The Dawn Archives: One Night
by HeartBeatFailure-x
Summary: [First of a planned series] Set in a supernatural world with various realms, Sasori is an oddity of a halfling with an eclectic mix of beings for his family and a vampire boyfriend.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: I don't own the characters, but we all know that! There will be swearing and a few fluffier scenes; you've been warned! Enjoy -**

**OOO**

The blonde vampire was past caring about the blood he was trailing on the floor. It had been too much in one _night_, in one _go _for him to even try cleaning up his tracks. They could track him back to his apartment for all he cared. He just needed a drink and four walls - somewhere to hide him for a while.

The attack wasn't anticipated. There had been at least a dozen men with multiple weapons per body, and Deidara hadn't sensed them at all. _Embarrassingly, _he'd run himself right into a trap that even his boyfriendwould laugh at. It had been foolish - but he was far too wound up to currently care what anybody else thought. He knewhe'd made a mistake, he knewwhat it had cost him - and yet they'd spared his life when they had it within their grasps to take it. They wanted him alive and he didn't know why. But that was a problem for another day - even if he knew it was another mistake that he was making.

He bashed in the door to his apartment and closed it behind him, despite its barely-held hinges. He trailed to the kitchen tiles and reached for the alcohol, debated the blood bags in the fridge but alcohol was better, before stumbling to the floor in fatigue. It had been a long trudge home - they'd battered him at the scene of the attack, tormented him as they kidnapped him - tying him up in a vehicle of seemingly _tiny _proportions - before repeatedly mutilating his quick-healing body. After a few hours his body couldn't keep up and the damage took its toll - so they'd started breaking bones and maiming his skin, mangling his limbs as far as possible.

It would take decapitation, cremation, or a whole heart-out-of-chest scenario to kill him - but even with his elderly strength, Deidara had to praise his attackers for their creativity. It was going to be a hellish recovery over the next few days.

His mind went blank.

There was a ghost of a hand on his cheek; everything felt cold in comparison to its warmth. He blinked open his eyes, horrified for a moment that he could see. His vision came back in blobs of colour, pinpointing a familiar red and black blur. But his head was pounding, pulsing with adrenaline. He needed blood. He licked his dry lips and felt his head grow heavy in anticipation.

"Hang on" A quiet voice reached his ears, calm but focussed. Deidara saw the light of the fridge and then the smell of blood assailed his senses with elation. The cool liquid reached his lips and he didn't even care that he preferred it warm. "Slow down" The blood bag was pulled away and he felt his anger race.

"Don't" The voice echoed in his ears and the liquid was slowly poured back into his mouth. Habitually, and now a little stronger, Deidara's hand reached for the blood bag to squeeze more of it out - but something had him pinned.

"Just wait, brat" The name soothed him. The blood craving left him, his body a little more energised now. He could focus, feel every cut on his body and every bruise that marred him. Sitting on a particular sore patch of his stomach however, was none other than his boyfriend.

"Off, 'n" Deidara wriggled and the red head fell back onto his heels. The blonde sat up groggily, aware of the fact that the kitchen tiles were trying to replicate a crime scene. He wasn't bleeding as much, but his head still felt like a brick.

Looking up, he saw Sasori clearly now despite only having one working eye - the other one merely provided a blank blur. But it didn't mean he could see any less. Sasori's face was bruised, his usually elfin features tarnished, his eyes darkening with rare and obvious anger, his cheekbones blemished with repeated attacks. Deidara lowered his gaze to the red head's pale hands, his knuckles split, his fingers lacerated with slashes as far up the sleeves as Deidara could see. And some of them were still bleeding. He felt his anger break.

"What the fuck-" His head split, a cracking pain across his forehead. He quietened his voice, a cool but rough finger over his mouth in an instant.

"Shh" Sasori moved his finger to Deidara's jaw, tracing a cut. "You need to get cleaned up - if they get infected it'll take longer to-"

"What happened to you, un?" He asked, moving his face away from Sasori's touch. "Don't ignore things like this" He reached for Sasori's cheekbone but couldn't bring himself to touch the wound. He knew the amount of self-control that the red head had over himself; he wouldn't need reminding that he was damaged and pained. Deidara pulled his hand back but Sasori didn't even blink.

"I was jumped. I thought they were hunters - but they weren't. They mentioned your name so I came to check" Sasori tipped his head, trying to take in all of the vampire's wounds. A few seconds of study and Sasori's hand brushed back the lengths of Deidara's fringe, revealing the cold, blank, baby blue eye that couldn't see him. He smiled nonetheless, running a thumb underneath it.

Deidara moved his hand unconsciously to his exposed and useless eye, Sasori's hand slipping to meet it from the blonde's matted hair.

"Don't mock me" Deidara knocked away the others hands and rearranged his fringe back over his eye. "Damnit, they took my scope. They _broke _my scope -"

"I love it" Sasori whispered, leaning close. "You're an oddity, Deidara"

"So you've told me, un" The blonde rolled his shoulders, testing their strength before wobbling up to a stand and leaning on the counter for support. "I'm gonna' shower" He announced. "Bones will seize up like a bitch and you _know _I don't cope well with infection"

"Nobody does" Sasori braved a smile, his head tipped fondly to the side. "I'm broken too" He muttered, his voice low and teasing. He pulled off the beanie hat he'd been wearing to keep warm. It was then that Deidara noticed that his apartment had been slowly heating itself up. Sasori must've put it on for himself.

Then, off came the red head's black puffa jacket and then the black Doc's. Deidara didn't miss the wince that betrayed Sasori's feelings as he pulled at his jumper.

"Well there goes my sexy strip tease" Sasori sighed and placed his hands in his lap as he paused, his head lolling backwards in tiredness. Suddenly, Deidara's face was inches away - but whereas once it would've startled him, Sasori now associated it with the cheekiness of his boyfriend's attitude.

"Shower now" Deidara suggested, slowly pulling up the offending jumper. "Strip later"

"Hm" Sasori agreed. The two stumbled to a stand and helped their aching selves towards the bathroom, barely making it into the shower before stumbling - fully clothed - into the shower wall.


	2. Chapter 2

"How many were there, un?" Deidara questioned, his hands and fingers laced behind his head, his hair spread around his bare shoulders as it air dried. He was resting, sat up against the headboard with his legs straight out and bent at the knees in front of him, parted only a little in the middle where Sasori sat facing him.

"At least twelve" Sasori murmured, cradling his cup of hot milk. He'd tugged on one of Deidara's bed shirts and sweat pants and had settled himself in front of the blonde, his feet resting by the others hips, his knees resting lightly against the side of Deidara's rib cage.

"Did they say anything?" Deidara felt Sasori shift, smelt the milk as it flowed from the cup and into his mouth. "You're stalling" He heard the red head swallow.

"They mentioned… something about barriers and rules and regulations. And then you. They specifically mentioned your name" The mug was raised and Sasori tipped it against his lips again.

"That's all you remember, un?" Deidara frowned, running his tongue over his semi-protruding fang. Sasori sensed the blonde's disappointment and slight confusion. Sasori was known for his tact and impeccable recollection. When Sasori said nothing more, Deidara began to worry. "'Sori?"

"Did they take you somewhere?" Sasori shifted the question focus, sipping at his drink distractedly. "When they got you, did they take you somewhere else?"

"Sasori" Deidara unlaced his hands from behind his head and leant forwards. The red head responded by swinging his legs back together and over the side of the bed - over Deidara's leg and out of reach.

He jumped up, setting the mug of milk down and began pacing the room. Deidara leapt forwards onto his knees, one hand reaching Sasori's wrist as the other grabbed his shoulder from behind. He tugged Sasori back to him, adjusting his hold now that they were closer, holding the red head's waist. He was tempted to dip a hand lower, but Sasori was stood firm and the tension in his limbs made it clear he was trying to stay calm. "Sa'tsuna~" Deidara teased, pressing his lips to an exposed collarbone.

"I almost shifted" Sasori sighed, his shoulders lowering now his pent up anxiety had been released. Deidara placed another kiss on the back of Sasori's neck, brushing his slightly-too-long hair aside with his nose.

"I was heading back to my place when they attacked. They took me somewhere else and the first thing they did was empty a bucket of freezing water over me and laugh. I managed not to change but… it felt like a prank, not an attack. I only remember bits; I'm sorry. I'm not sure what they did"

"I'll rip their throats out" Deidara murmured. "You can use their bones like chew toys and I'll watch as they writhe in despair"

"Didn't take you for a poet" Sasori whispered. "But it's appreciated, nonetheless" They were still for a while, Sasori mulling over his sporadic memories of the previous hours while Deidara imagined his revenge.

"They let you go, un?" Deidara asked after a while.

"Something seemed to draw them away. They just stopped and left" Sasori's voice was quiet. "I remember seeing the woods..." He studied his hands, scabbed and still with a few traces of dirt under his fingernails. "I made it back to mine; it's just flickers from there until I woke up by the fireplace" Deidara gave Sasori's thin body a squeeze, knowing his red head hated the fuzzy in-between moments where he wasn't quite here or there. "Your name was in my head like an echo; I don't know what they said, but I knew they'd mentioned you enough for me to remember it. I came here as soon as I could. Easier than I thought it would be, considering. You _do _realise there's a blood trail half way down your corridor?"

"I'll find a new place tomorrow, un" Deidara released his red head and leant back - though, still half-knelt up on his bed.

"Do _you_ remember anything?" Sasori asked him.

Deidara flopped backwards, his long legs falling over the side of the bed where they bent at the knees. Sasori stepped closer, his shins against the bedside and inches away from Deidara's legs, his fingers brushing the material on the thighs of Deidara's comfy jogging bottoms. His chest was bare, revealing the healing wounds of his torture.

Any other person might've reached for one, to assess the damage, to empathise, but Sasori was firm in his belief of not exposing vulnerability - something he'd inadvertently picked up when attending family functions. He didn't touch any of Deidara's wounds out of empathy, or sympathy, or even guilt. Instead, he saw them stilled against the pale skin of his boyfriends chest, wondering how many it would have taken for them to disable or incapacitate the blonde completely.

A few of the knife-like lacerations had been close to the left side of his chest, near the tattoo he had covering his heart. He felt his breath hitch at that. It looked too close. He almost reached for that one, but found his fingers had already curled indignantly into fists.

Deidara drew his legs up, his knees bending upwards until the heels of his feet rested on the edges of the mattress. Sasori was tempted to jump him again, but settled for leaning down - his hands either side of Deidara's shoulders - careful to avoid the mass of hair. Deidara's long legs trapped him from behind, crossing at the ankles as they rested against Sasori's back.

"I asked you a question" Sasori murmured, watching the blonde's reaction. He'd already closed his eyes, his hands laced behind his head again in that coy way that always seemed to glorify the vampire's beauty. And that cocky smile... "Deidara?" The blonde couldn't be asleep, surely. "Brat" But just to be sure, Sasori brushed aside the hair flowing over the sightless eye, a move he knew the blonde couldn't ignore for long.

"Hm?" It opened alongside the sparkling baby blue of the other, the coy smile working its way onto Deidara's lips. His hands moved fast, his legs even quicker, using them to knock Sasori off balance and then his hands to catch the red head as he lost his upper strength. They would've fallen, their heads banging together, but Sasori was much too clever to be caught off guard completely. He pulled his body upright before Deidara could steal a distracting kiss.

"What… do you… remember?" He asked, his hands pressing down to keep Deidara still. The blonde barely winced from his position underneath the red head, still splayed out on the bed. Sasori's fingers dug impatiently into the bed sheets.

"Aside from their repeatedly impeccable torture, their extensive weaponry and their creative talent for autopsying my insides, not much" The blonde said, when Sasori clearly wasn't going to give him what he wanted.

"Dei..." Sasori felt his stomach do twists at the thought of someone messing around with his insides. The blonde leant up for a rewarding kiss, but Sasori pulled back and made it clear he wasn't going to comply. Deidara remained still then, working out the calculations in the others eyes; Sasori wasn't going to let him off that easily. _What else, _his eyes were asking. _What else did they do? _

"They may have mentioned something about demons un, but not you. I didn't know they'd gone for you and if I had…" Deidara reached a hand up and traced the small markings along Sasori's arm. "They seemed more interested in what my body was doing" Deidara stopped and frowned suddenly, his hand flopping back to his side. "Disgusting - eugh, I feel used, un" He twisted away from Sasori, turning over completely despite the hovering red head and his limbs. Now on his front, Deidara made to crawl away but Sasori spontaneously dropped his weight on top.

"Are you playing?" Deidara murmured, his face in the bed sheets as Sasori flopped his arms and legs over Deidara's limbs.

"Seems so" Sasori whispered. The blonde groaned - for any possible reason.

The red head stilled though, finding more healing lacerations on Deidara's back. He felt his anger return and sourced Deidara's groan as one of discomfort. He rolled off the blonde and began pacing the room again. He saw his clothes drying on the radiator and seized them, glad to find them bone dry and fuzzy warm. He shredded Deidara's shirt and began redressing himself.

"Where are you going, un?" Deidara had rolled himself to the end of the bed, his long arms stretched out, reaching towards Sasori, watching as the red head tugged the sweat pants down. "You're not going anywhere, un" Deidara grinned as he watched Sasori smirk knowingly, but the red head only swapped the trousers for a clean pair of underpants and his dark jeans.

He plucked off the socks from the heater and proceeded to hop them onto his feet. The blonde simply watched as the red head changed into his heated clothing, knowing he'd soon leave.

"We can't stay here" Sasori justified his reason, though they both felt it wasn't the only one. "You need to sleep and I'm not leaving you here. You can stay at my place"

"Bed's warm, though" Deidara shuffled a bit and sighed in obvious contentment.

"You left a blood trail to your door, don't forget. They'll easily find you again - you bled like a freaking river" Sasori raided the blonde's wardrobe and tossed out a pair of jeans, a shirt and a jacket. Habitually, he grasped a scarf and a hat and tossed them to the blonde as well. "Come on" He urged, putting on a pair of gloves.

The blonde moved quickly then, or at least quicker than he was but not as quick as he could. Sasori cursed the injuries, and then blamed himself for feeling so comfortable and relieved. "Deidara" He urged, seeing the blonde slow.

"Fuck off, un" The blonde growled suddenly, his head falling into his hands. "Damned headaches..." Sasori went into the kitchen, finding his boots by the counter and slipping them on. He found the headache pills and filled up a glass of water, striding back to Deidara in seconds. He put them on the bedside table.

"Dei, come on"

It was his eye. The blind eye's nerves were still in working order. They knew they were supposed to be seeing something, the blurs of colour. It never took long for it to wrack the blonde with headaches when he was without his scope.

Sasori picked the scarf up from the bed, that he knew Deidara wouldn't wear, and attacked the blonde from behind. He tied it diagonally across Deidara's head, covering his impaired eye so that the working nerves nerves would at least see pure-black, not the patchwork colour of an almost-something sight. That should at least help. Sasori relayed the plan, keeping the blonde focussed.

"We have to move before the sun comes up anyway. We'll go back to mine and you can sleep. We'll deal with everything else after you rest. Please, Dei"

"Alright - Alright" Deidara wobbled to a stand, his bare feet shifting to balance his weight. He zipped up the jacket over his barely-buttoned shirt and raced a belt through the loops of his jeans. Sasori flopped the beanie hat onto the blonde's head before putting his own on, borrowing another scarf to keep himself warm before heading out to the hallway. Deidara followed, albeit still at a limp and with no socks or boots on - and he'd removed the hat.

"Shoes, Dei"

"Do you want me to wear shoes or move faster? Choose carefully, un" Sasori grimaced at this, debating his options.

"Just hurry up"

Deidara turned and limped back into the bedroom. Sasori waited, listening to him shuffle things around and then emerge with a duffel bag partly opened. He moved into the other rooms of his apartment, grabbing some things and dumping them into the bag, not bothering to zip it up. He stopped, and Sasori could see the mental checklist running through his eyes.

"Straighteners? Hair dryer? Extra socks?" He joked, and Deidara pulled a face.

"Don't get pissy with me, un"


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Thanks for the favourites and follows ^_^ **

OOO

"Why are we walking, un?" Deidara gave Sasori another nervous glance and squeezed his hand a little tighter. With every white-puff of the red heads breath, Deidara imagined his warmth slipping along with it. "Your ring could've just portalled us"

"I forgot how lazy you can be"

"Not lazy. Efficient. It'd be quicker, you'd be warmer, there would be less chance of us getting tailed _and _consequently ambushed. We'd go from my hallway, to your bedroom. If that's not efficient, I don't know what is, un"

Sasori held in a laugh and squeezed Deidara's hand, their fingers interlocked.

"Unless it's the Human Thing again" Deidara added thoughtfully, turning to inspect the others reaction. A twitch, a glance away and a dipped chin - _definitely the Human Thing. _Deidara left it alone.

Sasori was raised between worlds which was something that not a lot of people, supernatural or otherwise, were able to do. He spent the first nine years of his life as a damn-good human, keeping his ability under perfect control - as expected from the grandson of Chiyo - one of the most influential supernatural healers of their time, (she was also doing ground breaking work in the human realm too); she was the reason for the flexibility that Sasori had between worlds.

Anybody else had to apply - or do it illegally and risk being caught. Or, you know, have a powerful magic-worker of some sort conveniently on their side - such was the case in Sasori's oddball family.

"You're not moaning" Sasori said carefully, wondering if he'd rather the blonde grumble about the 'uselessness' of it, or how 'not-efficient' human things can sometimes be. Like Christmas. And Sasori _loved _Christmas.

"I ache too much to complain" Deidara murmured, and Sasori wondered if perhaps the blonde looked paler than normal. He was naturally fair, so it was harder to tell. "Something's off"

"You're probably hungry" Sasori reasoned.

"Hm"

They were quiet until they reached Sasori's latest residence. It had been his longest stint yet - a whole eight months in one place. Granted, he'd been warned repeated by his Family that it wasn't a good idea, but it was an ideal location and within a walk's distance from Deidara - even quicker on his bicycle (in his panic, he'd simply run to the blonde's apartment instead and completely forgot that he could use his ring to portal him; his brother would throw a fit that he'd picked up too many bad human habits).

They both slowed as they reached the building, checking their senses for any sign of intrusion or tampering. Deidara gave a nod and Sasori didn't feel any doubt - agreeing that the building was safe; Sasori moved to the door.

"I'll pack up" Sasori unlocked the door and immediately went to his bedroom to get a bag and gather his things. He was thankful for the automatic heating - coming on when the room's temperature fell below twenty degrees. While packing, he briefly heard Deidara's own bags fall to the floor and then the front door close. As his focus shifted onto what he _needed _to take and what was immediately necessary, he left Deidara to his own devices.

He'd been shifting from room to room, eventually stocking up on the instant hot-chocolate sachet's when he sensed he was being watched. His skin tingled in warning, like fur would rise on an animal, and he turned to look behind him.

Deidara opened the door to the fridge, finding a recycled bottle filled with blood.

"Smells like you" Deidara reached for it and sniffed it for good measure, but the displeasure was there on his face. "Have you been feeding strays or something?"

"Yeah, totally been selling it on a stand for some extra cash" When the blonde didn't seem at all amused, Sasori smiled to ease him. "It's my emergency backup"

"For what? A blood transfusion?" Deidara pulled a face. "It'd do no good in a fridge, un"

"For _you, _brat. It's my emergency back up for you"

"Why?"

"Because" Sasori left it at that and continued packing, but Deidara wasn't convinced and kept eyeing the bottle like it was a newfound wonder. Sasori didn't expect him to pour it down the sink. He watched it go, gobsmacked.

"What the fuck? I bled that out for _emergencies! _Like _now!_"

"No" Deidara refused and Sasori groaned in frustration. In all the time they'd known each other, Deidara had refused to take even a lick of Sasori's blood. The red head had gone through thinking of the blonde's reasons, that it was 'icky' blood, that it was somehow tainted because of his odd ability, or that it was a control thing, or that Deidara had been bribed or threatened by Sasori's family not to lay a tooth on him. Deidara had never given him a straight answer as to why.

Sasori had the genius idea a few weeks ago and had been horribly looking forward to a dramatic occasion where Deidara would be so injured, so in need of blood, and Sasori would be so prepared that the blonde would just _have _to finally taste it.

He just hadn't expected Deidara to be so stubborn about it.

"I'm going to hunt" Deidara murmured, already going for the door. Sasori wondered if that was how he'd picked up on the blood in the fridge - sniffing everything out because he needed something to drink. If that was the case, then Deidara would go - regardless of whether or not his body was fully healed and able. Vampires were predators, they'd rather die gathering food than from the starvation that'd come if they didn't.

"Please don't come back with it" Sasori had once shut himself in his bedroom until all trace - smell and all - had vanished from that poor dog that Deidara insisted had been roadkill before he'd even got his teeth in there. _"Just like take-away, un". _Sasori didn't see it that way, and would forever remember the way Deidara brought the animal back, slung over his shoulders like a hulking scarf, his fangs drinking from its neck like he'd drink through a straw. He'd been _horrified. _

"I won't be far; if I'm not back in half an hour, leave"

"Hurry back" Sasori waved a hand at him and continued to pack. The movement kept him warm and he was glad when he could still zip up the bag despite its contents. He put on another jacket and checked the time. Five minutes until Deidara said to leave. He _always _said things like that and Sasori always thought he'd be cheeky and wait anyway - but Deidara was always on time and Sasori never had to worry about it.

He caught Deidara's scent, half-smothered by something _else _and knew that his blonde was returning. The door was knocked - more as a warning - and Deidara came in, his hands crusted with blood but hidden mostly in his sleeves.

"Smells like pig" Sasori murmured, fiddling with the ring on his finger. "But I don't know where you'd find a _pig _in the city" It was hard enough finding a patch of woodland for the blonde to entertain his hunting skills - never mind a farm for him to sneak a few meals from.

"Slaughterhouse" Deidara licked a bloody tongue over his fang. Sasori watched it with jealousy. "I hunted a poodle; you should've seen it"

"Did you kill it?!" Sasori gaped.

"Pft, no. It got carried away like a baby - its legs were shaking so bad it couldn't walk" Deidara had said that each vampire has an individual preference; some like their blood straight from the 'tap', alive or dead or somewhere in between. Mammals or reptile - some had peculiar preferences and suffered because of it, but Deidara had never told Sasori what his unique preference was.

Sasori had seen the blonde drink it hot, warm and chilled and iced. He'd seen him drink from dead and live animals, unsuspecting humans (twice, because he had no choice). He didn't seem to be too fussy, but if there was one thing Sasori knew that the blonde enjoyed, it was the hunt.

Sasori could understand that - the thrill of the chase and gaining a prize at the end of it. Though more often than not Deidara would _abandon _his 'prize' and leave it traumatized out of fear. Perhaps that was his preference. The mental torment of his not-food. Once the chase was over, a meal was secured elsewhere. Sasori didn't understand it and Deidara never explained it. It was just an oddity that the blonde seemed to have.

"Are you done?" Deidara asked, standing toe-to-toe with the red head and looking more refreshed. His hair was a touch lighter and livelier. His skin had its porcelain look back, his eyes vibrant and shining. His wounds from before had even started to heal more - a sure-sign that he was recovering. If only it worked that well for Sasori.

"Yeah" Sasori nodded and snuck a kiss on Deidara's jaw, glad that he wasn't in a grump any more. He sidestepped over to the nearest wall and pressed his ring into it, an oval looking shadow appearing. His other hand was outstretched moments before Deidara took it with both their bags in his own hands, their fingers laced together as they stepped through the portal and into Somewhere Else.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Smutty smushiness ahead! I'm sorry it can't be anything more .**

OOO

"Human realm. North Dakota" Sasori clarified instantly, dumping a bag on the floor and immediately reaching for the pendant around his neck. Was Deidara wearing his? He turned, seeing Deidara shift the collar of his shirt to the side to reveal that he did still own a matching pendant. Good, the house wouldn't reject them as 'intruders'.

"Three years ago" Deidara nodded slowly, remembering. "You did nothing but decorate this place"

"It was fair; you practically built it"

"I was _bored" _Deidara sighed, fingering the curtain gingerly before checking out the dark landscape past the window. "Looks like your System works" Sasori had known to take them somewhere dark.

"Of course it does" The mapping system had been Sasori's way of keeping track of the myriad of safe houses that they'd built. There were many over a vast amount of places and countries, at least two in every realm, and more than five specifically in the human realm because of its strong barriers against the supernatural.

"We need to turn the power on, un" Deidara made for the nearest door, his memory of the blueprints of the house coming back to him little by little. Sasori kept close, running his hands down the walls, checking the detailing and keeping an eye out for any of Deidara's little house-quirks.

"Remember the one in Southern France? With that little book space on the stair?" Sasori smiled as he remembered their one-week test-stay. The power had gone off twice but they'd since managed to fix it.

"And that ridiculously expensive gate you almost _died _to get, un"

"It was a genuine work of art; a masterpiece. It deserved to be there" Sasori justified.

"Of course, un" They navigated the hallways hand in hand, eventually reaching the control box. Deidara flicked the switches and they felt the house pop into life. The small side lights came on, a cosy glow illumining the bottom floor. Sasori went to close the curtains, a human habit because it was night time and the curtains were closed when it was dark. Deidara reasoned that for him, it was like closing the curtains at day time - pointless - but the argument had since become tedious and the blonde allowed Sasori to close them if he wished.

In the meantime, Deidara checked the heaters were up and running; the house was cool, not chilly and was fully insulated in all ways - but he wouldn't have it as a future issue. He turned the heating up and then went through the kitchen cupboards - all preservatives intact. It was mainly soups and instant noodles, but it'd do for now.

"Hungry?" Deidara asked, finding Sasori wrapping his second jacket closer to his body. "Cold?"

"I'm fine" He answered, settling back against the counter with his hips tilting forwards just enough that Deidara recognised the suggestive arch.

"Light the fireplace in the living room, then eat your food, un" Deidara commanded.

"I'm warm and not hungry; weren't you listening?"

"No playtime until chores are done" Deidara snagged Sasori's hips and bumped their groins together. The little flutter Sasori's eyes gave him sent his nerves alight. "Weren't you listening?" He added, watching the challenge tear itself across the red heads porcelain face before he quickly went to kindle the fire.

Deidara watched Sasori's impatient movements as he hurried the kindling together, as he quietly urged the flames to catch and then heard his heartbeat increasing with want. Deidara wanted to go back into the kitchen and start on his boyfriend's food if it meant he could get that racing heart against his body in the next minute or so - but that would ruin their waiting game, and Sasori needed to be warm and fed. It was sort of like the hunt before the kill - and Deidara loved every minute.

"Fire's done" Sasori washed his hands in the sink and instantly found an easy can of soup, pouring it into a pan with all the eagerness of a starved child. "Food is cooking"

"I am a'waiting" Deidara crossed his arms and watched Sasori from the other end of the kitchen; the span of the realms could be between them from the look on Sasori's face. His eyes narrowed, unimpressed with the distance and knowing why.

"I hate it when you do this"

"No you don't" He murmured huskily, watching Sasori's fingers as they curled in response - into fists to hide his clear approval. It went both ways. Deidara loved watching Sasori's body move, the sheer possessiveness that overcame him knowing that the red head was his - and Sasori enjoyed the full satisfaction of giving Deidara what he wanted - an eyefull. He could deny that fact as much as he wanted to, but Deidara knew the tell tale signs - the extra hip movements, the exaggerated breaths, the delicate way his fingers moved because Deidara knew what those fingers could do-

"Stop it" Sasori canted his hip to the side and Deidara grinned with delight. "I can practically feel those cogs working in your brain - whatever you're thinking, stop it" Sasori sighed, not turning to face the blonde at all as he focussed his growing arousal on stirring the damned soup. "Deidara, I swear to-"

"Just a bit longer, un" Deidara was closer, the small island counter between them instead of the entire kitchen. Sasori thought it was even worse than having him so far away - he was only a few paces, it'd be nothing just to jump on him and- "Keep stirring" Sasori fell silent and continued, finally pouring it into a large cup so he could drink it.

"Don't rush, un" Deidara frowned in disapproval as Sasori quickly moved the cup to his lips to drink it - it'd probably scald his mouth.

"I hate waiting," Sasori frowned back, blowing cautiously onto his soup. "And you're making me impatient hovering like that"

"Un" Deidara moved towards the sink, where Sasori had abandoned the pan used to cook his soup, and began washing it up. Sasori watched with careful glances, telling himself he could sneak a look for every spoonful he managed to get into his mouth.

By the time Deidara had dried the pan and put it away, the soup was gone. He abandoned his cup on the counter and waited expectantly for Deidara to make the first move. He was pinned against the fridge seconds later, Deidara's limbs reaching everywhere.

Deidara was always careful with his kisses - and that tongue was exceptional at making sure his fangs didn't catch Sasori at all. The red head quickly gripped onto the first thing he could latch his hand around - Deidara's jacket - the pressure below his waistline building up like fire.

Who needed the heating on when five seconds of Deidara turned him into a hot-mess? His boyfriend pulled back, a knowing smirk on his face as his fingers - now freezing against Sasori's hot and bothered body - traced the waistline just above his jeans. Sasori felt his stomach muscles tighten with want.

"Lower," Sasori didn't wine, or beg or plead, he suggested. Very intentionally. Deidara's fingers dipped and Sasori was instantly thankful. It would have been so easy for the blonde to just stop and leave him hanging like a panting dog.

"You're still healing," Deidara nibbled at his ear, one arm securing Sasori between his body and the fridge, the other proccupied with Sasori's nether regions. "I don't want to see you hurting like this, un" What was he talking about?

"Just - _lower, _brat. Ah-…" He stifled a groan, his body automatically jerking into Deidara's touch. "Mmmf"

"Already?"

"Don't mock me," Sasori grumbled, suddenly realising how his body ached. Deidara held the red head close for a few moments. Sasori wouldn't say he was easy, or even a quick lay - in fact, he was often very surprised at himself for how long he could keep up with Deidara's bedtime plans. It had barely taken a minute and, he now realised, he was rather embarrassed. Surely Deidara was expecting more than that. He peered up at his boyfriend, wondering.

"Do you want to clean up, un?" Deidara asked.

"No" Sasori didn't want to do anything without satisfying his boyfriend at least once. That had been a pathetic offering on his part, the least he could do was give his much-better healing, clearly-over-confident man something in return - with interest. He began to remove Deidara's jacket, dropping it to the floor. He then started work on the belt, his heart racing as he dragged it back through the loops of Deidara's jeans - and then watching those jeans sag a little at his waist.

Deidara was limp and patient as Sasori peeled off the shirt as well, shifting the pendant so it didn't get tangled. He started to shift out of his shoes, but Sasori stood on his feet and looked up at him with such determination that Deidara could only smirk. He let Sasori undo the button of his jeans, and then let down the zipper - knowing full well they'd be one of the last items to come off.

Sasori slipped his warm hand into Deidara's freezing one, the mix of both instantly giving them both shivers as Sasori led him up the stairs and into the bedroom. Deidara sat patiently on the end of the bed as Sasori knelt on the floor, painstakingly slow in his removal of Deidara's shoes - he had shoved a pair on at the last minute, complete with odd socks. Sasori peeled those off too and then ran his hands up Deidara's ankles and as far up the inside of his jeans as they would go.

"Take the blind fold off"

Deidara hesitated, his hands either side of him as he considered undoing the scarf tied around his dud eye. His visible one blinked back at Sasori without any hint.

"You can if you want, un" Deidara murmured. Sasori stood up, shuffling onto his knees on the bed as he ran his hands through the ends of the silky blonde hair as Deidara's hands became proccupied with shuffling down Sasori's jeans. Sasori untied the blind fold and Deidara lowered himself back, easily supporting Sasori's weight too as he shuffled up the bed a bit more for space. Sasori kept where he was, finally tugging down Deidara's jeans, feeling much happier that they were gone and his boyfriend was clearly excited. Yes, it would make up for his adolescent-like display before.

All that was left between them was their underwear, and Deidara was watching him in that predatory way which had a habit of making his blood pump faster. Sasori felt caught, stumped, as if Deidara had snatched away his intent with one look.

"You're too weak" Deidara murmured.

"Shut up" Sasori frowned. "I've topped half as many times as you"

"Not while looking like that" Sasori wasn't one to dwell on his mistakes. He'd practically walked into that trap and he was injured because of it - perhaps more than he ever had been in his life - but he wasn't going to dwell on it and he wasn't going to let it rule his sex life. Deidara's cold hands ran over his heated (and tender and bruised and scuffed) skin and he gave in.

"So, do you want to top?"

"No, un" Deidara wrapped his legs around Sasori's and held him closer, their bodies tingling with their usual mix of cold and warm as he flipped them. Sasori frowned, but got the gist as Deidara slipped beneath the bed sheets and further down to Sasori's growing problem.

"This isn't fa-ir" His hands flailed for a grip, finding Deidara's solid shoulder as his warm tongue did wicked things. His stomach was in knots. "You need it too" Was that a whine? _Grow up, Sasori! _He supposed he could build up an I.O.U of sorts, maybe pay the blonde back with surprises and things in the mean time. Yes, that would have to do. The attack was finaly taking its toll; he'd been ignoring it because Deidara's had healed, and in normal circumstances Sasori would have probably already been healed himself by one of his brothers little remedies. As it was, he hadn't been Home and was suffering like a human because of it.

He was exhausted and sleepy by the time Deidara had his way with him - but it was still dark outside and the sun wasn't going to be up for a few more hours.

"I can't have my Danna feeling so useless, un" Deidara teased, having come up from under the sheets and joined Sasori at the top. "It means I've neglected you"

"No it doesn't" Sasori scoffed in disagreement. "It means I'm unsatisfactory"

"Say you are unsatisfactory," Deidara's fingers slipped inbetween Sasori's. "Your body is more than enough, lover" Deidara snuggled closer into Sasori's smaller body and then pulled away to grab a blanket. The blanket was made from a heat-insulating material, keeping Sasori warm on the inside while remaining thin enough for him to still feel Deidara's body on the outside. "Your personality is good too, un" He added with a grin.

OOO

Not long after, they got a visitor.

Kisame hopped through a portal with a frown and some swear words and a few additional death-threats to Deidara, but Sasori thought it could've been a lot worse.

(Specifically if Kisame had appeared just half an hour earlier during their more compromising situation in the bedroom. As it was, they'd showered and settled - fully clothed - in front of the fire with a blanket again, Sasori fiddling with Deidara's drying hair while the blonde read his book).

"And you!" The large, blue demon poked his finger at Sasori. "I expected better"

"I'm sorry" Sasori said awkwardly, fully realising that he hadn't told any of his Family about his spontaneous getaway trip with his boyfriend. He supposed it did look a bit suspicious, but even so… to send Kisame? He was the older brother, a borderline father figure - he'd haul his ass home by the ear if he had to. It wouldn't take much from the demon, not at all. He was a warrior and mercenary and chief commanding officer of anything family related.

"You should've known we'd look; especially after the last road trip you both snuck out on - and if you were counting on that, you shouldn't have" He added, his voice low and daring.

"Don't fucking remind me" Deidara growled, arms folded over his chest as he remained at the most distance from Kisame as he could without abandoning Sasori. Unfortunately, the demon hissed back a warning.

"Careful, _vampire" _

"Stop it" Sasori sighed, used to the way his family members treated his boyfriend. He'd managed to calm them somewhat, but he hadn't helped either of their causes on that road trip. "Kisame, you can report me still alive, well and fed. And warm, see? Pink" He held out his arm and tugged up his sleeve, his wrists pink with life. "And _happy" _He motioned his head to the blonde, sat in the darkened corner with a glower.

"And you're sure this is okay?" Kisame nudged a finger over Sasori's healing wounds.

"Just an ambush. I should've known better - it's nothing" He lied, and then wondered why. If anything, Kisame could tell the others and they could help find whoever had set the attack up, who'd forced Sasori away from Deidara - who'd _vivisected _his boyfriend so violently. Not that he could tell any more - the blonde was healing spectacularly. No, he wouldn't make Kisame worry if he didn't need to. Any threat to Deidara was a threat to Sasori and his Family would hike his ass away from his boyfriend at the first possibility of trouble. No. He'd figure it out himself. He was an adult, after all. _Barely. _

"Fine; you know where I am if you need me" Kisame put his fist to the wall, the ring on his finger creating a shadow portal. "Though I'll admit I'm a bit tied up at the moment"

"Mercenary stuff?" Sasori guessed.

"No, something else" Kisame smiled just a little and Sasori waited for him to expand. When he didn't, the red head shrugged.

"Well… say hi to the Others for me" He smiled, thinking of his other family members. Kisame left with a nod and a wave and Sasori sighed out audibly. "I'm sorry" He whined, turning to his blonde and repeating the same apologies, and then they rolled out as they always did. Sasori would apologise for his inability to defend himself, his family's lack of understanding for their relationship, and then how horrible a boyfriend he must be and so on. It was practically a rehearsed speech, he'd said it so many times.

"Un" They hugged for a while in mutual understanding until Deidara unfolded their tangled arms and slipped away into another room without explanation. Sasori went to his bedroom and heard nothing from the blonde until he appeared silently in his doorway some time later.

He had fallen asleep on top of his bed, waking to find Deidara peeling off his rain-sodden clothes.

"Where'd you go?" He asked groggily. He was in that foggy place between being asleep or awake when he'd heard the shuffling, the _familiar _'swoosh' that the shirt made as it came over the blonde's head and away from his hair. He'd suspected he was dreaming, but then the room was filled with Deidara-smell. There wasn't a way to describe what Deidara smelt like - Sasori just knew that he was incredibly sensitive to it and he could never dream it up. He also smelt like rain and blood and dirt. Clearly he'd been out for a hunt.

Whatever Sasori's dirty mind had thought, Deidara shattered it when he stripped (and half tripped) his way to the bathroom.

Sasori listened to it run, vaguely aware of the time and partially alert to the smells drifting from it - shower gel and Deidara smell.

After that, they cuddled on the bed until just before the sun came up and Deidara went downstairs into the basement - the safest place for him during the daylight hours.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: I hope the chapters aren't too long!**

OOO

Over the next few days their routine adapted. Sasori had been sleeping during the night out of habit, and he assumed because of the attack that his body needed the recovery time. He gradually adjusted his body clock to stay awake at night, spending more time with Deidara, and sleeping during the day with him in the basement.

It was things like this that his family didn't approve of; Kisame would throw a fit at the blonde for '_refusing to let the boy be a boy and not a freakin' night owl'. _Or something along those lines. In Sasori's mind, it was safer and meant they could spend more time together.

They were into their first week and Sasori had taken to researching online while Deidara went out to hunt. He couldn't find much, and refused to ask his family for help for a myriad of reasons. The main one being that they would immediately haul his ass away from Deidara if they suspected anything in the way of 'danger'. Also, any threat to his life would probably result in isolation and his family probably had enough on their plates already. He wouldn't bother them with simple research; Besides, sometimes Sasori liked the research. It reminded him of school and human things.

OOO

"Come out with me, un" Deidara flopped onto Sasori's lap, covering the smaller red head and blocking his view from the laptop.

"You hate hunting with me" Sasori frowned, abandoning his work and leaning back. He had been at it for a while.

"I've already eaten" Deidara laced his fingers through Sasori's hair, tugging it slightly. "I meant into town or something, un" North Dakota was all Deidara knew about where exactly they were. He wasn't sure about the town name, and the only thing he knew for sure was that Sasori wouldn't have chosen a house that wasn't more than a fair walk away from the nearest town or village - they couldn't assume every house would eventually have a car - and he'd quickly realised that Sasori had barely left the house. If at all.

"Why?" Sasori asked, ever the introvert.

"Because you need a break. You're healing up, some fresh air might do you good. And you can't live off soup n' noodles, yeah"

"I can" Sasori scoffed, not wanting to admit that maybe he was missing the full hearty meals that were taken for granted at Home.

"I won't let you live off soup n' noodles, un" Deidara slipped off Sasori's legs and closed the laptop lid down. "Get your coat" Sasori might have protested a bit more if he could think of any other excuses - he was an introvert after all, there should have been more of them.

"Pizza is fine too, ya'know" Sasori kicked the chair under the desk and went to shove on his shoes. "Something quick and easy, or pasta"

"Or steak, un" Deidara frowned suddenly. "Do you even know how to cook meals?"

"Of course I do, brat" Sasori glared as Deidara made sure that his scarf was on and his hands were gloved and his jacket zipped well up. He felt like a child being dressed for The Great Outdoors by his parent. At that thought, he swatted away Deidara's hands and raised his eyebrow.

"Sorry un, just making sure" He snuck another kiss before they left the warmth of the house and went into the chilly air. It was closing in on winter - if not damn near almost there. "If it gets too cold, we'll stop and get a drink, un" Deidara promised, waving the small wad of cash that had probably come from the safe. Each house was prepared with its own necessities - the currency of the house's location and any other details were all in there. "Don't be a man and hide it, ok? I can deal with you better than I can your other half"

"Why? Can't get my lead on?" He teased.

"I can smart-mouth you back like this" Deidara snagged Sasori's gloved hand and grinned as he swung it back and forth. "Your wolfish self isn't as cooperative with my arguments"

"Nobody is" Sasori smiled sheepishly. "I'm the only one stupid enough to put up with you"

It wasn't as late as Sasori thought it was. The time occurred to him when they reached the little town and the main food stores were still open; having checked his watch, he realised it was only just half ten.

"You were up early" He said. "It's not even midnight - I thought it was later"

"The nights are earlier here, un" Deidara nodded. "Besides, you wouldn't come out here on your own during the day, and any later would mean the shops would be closed" They ducked into a shop and Deidara swiped a basket.

"Don't get fresh stuff; I won't eat it" Sasori murmured, eyeing the fruit and vegetables as Deidara approached them hopefully. Deidara took some oranges and apples and proceeded to pick up most of what Sasori didn't want. Sasori knew the effort it took to cook a decent meal and he wasn't prepared to waste time doing it. "Don't even think about it" He grabbed Deidara's arm and steered him away from the fish counter.

Deidara picked up all kinds of fresh meat, arguing his case the whole time that Sasori needed a balanced diet and some decent nutrition.

"Yes but _you're _not going to be cooking this shit" Sasori grumbled, as Deidara picked up some pasta and easy sauce things.

"You know I can, un"

"Oh I know _you _can. And you'll make me do it to prove a point"

"Un" Deidara smirked knowingly. "Nothing like watching your housewife cook a good meal, un"

"You're heading for dawn, you know that?" Sasori threatened.

"Kill me later, un. Pick your pizza" Sasori chose at least eight and was satisfied after that. They stocked up on a few bathroom things and went to pay without a fuss. Deidara kept his eyes down, though, and Sasori noticed. His long hair shielded his dud eye but the shop lights were bright. Maybe he was getting another headache.

Once they were out of the store, they wandered back through the town and noted a few of the bars and restaurants. The temperature had dropped and Sasori was cold, not freezing or dangerously close to shifting-point, but getting a bit uncomfortable for him to ignore. He gripped Deidara's jacket hesitantly and glanced at the still-open restaurant-thing they were walking past. Of course he wasn't going to admit weakness.

"We can't stay long, un" Deidara held up the bags to prove his point; the fresh food would need to be stored, the meat put away.

"We'll just get it to take out, then" Sasori headed for the building, glad to be wrapped in warmth as he made the most of it by walking slowly up to the counter.

"There's a fire over there, un" Deidara tugged him back and redirected Sasori to the heat. "What do you want to drink?"

"Hot chocolate" He said instantly. "Milk, not water" Deidara nodded and took the bags with him, leaving Sasori to sit near the fire. Every now and then he snuck a glance back at his boyfriend with the bar staff; he supposed Deidara _was _rather charming when he wanted to be, but Sasori was longing for his drink. He walked back to Deidara and grinned at the barman, who was smiling all too happily at Deidara with not a hot chocolate in sight.

"You must be the boyfriend" The barman said, and all the built up pre-hate vanished.

"Yes" He said curtly, and the barman popped the take-away cup of hot chocolate on the counter with a wink.

"On the house" He winked at Sasori and the red head tried not to gape. Usually Deidara got the freebies, the little compliments, the sexy winks that he couldn't (shouldn't) reciprocate. The barman then turned to Deidara with a small grin. "He is a little cutie, isn't he?" They both had the audacity to smile and laugh to themselves and Sasori chuckled humorlessly.

"Thank you for the drink" He said to the barman before taking the cup and turning on Deidara. "This little cutie will be sleeping alone tonight" He heard the barman stifle another laugh followed by Deidara's usual complacent sigh.

OOO

They'd found the alchohol in the back of the cupboards. Sasori had come across them while putting away some of their shopping, and had ended up drinking half a botte of red wine before he thought about how much it'd go to his empty stomach. Sober, Deidara made something quick and 'sturdy' and Sasori managed to eat it - finishing the bottle of wine completely and much to Deidara's annoyance.

"You're going to be sick tomorrow, un"

"You called me cute" Sasori grinned, aiming for another bottle to open.

"I've apologised more than once" Deidara reached and pulled his giggling boyfriend back into the living room - away from the alcohol. "Why did you finish the bottle, un?"

"Because you don't like it when I'm drunk" Sasori shrugged. "Aaaaaand you called me cute"

"So this is my punishment" Deidara concluded, and Sasori nodded with severe finality.

"I could think of nothing else" He admitted seriously. "As soon as I saw the bottles, I was like, shhhhwwwoooom" He made hand gestures, aiming for the bottes in the kitchen. "Good idea" He concluded, nodding to himself.

"I'll remind you of that tomorrow morning, un" Deidara held him fast, trying to keep the wriggling red head in his arms. In a burst of neglect, he freed Sasori and regretted it a second later.

Sasori was a playful drunk, the best kind to be drunk _with, _but not necessarily to cater for. He'd refuse to sit still until he'd sobered up, there would be inevitable table-top dancing (Sober-Sasori didn't know how well Drunk-Sasori could dance) and the usual trip or two - maybe a few mishaps with clothes before Sasori would eventually calm down.

If he was prepared and in the mood for it, Deidara would humour all of Sasori's drunken whims and play along - but his body was weary - perhaps his hunt hadn't been enough - and his head was splitting with a migraine larger than blunt force trauma to his skull. He debated locking Sasori in the basement for a while until he thought of all the things in there that he'd probably start to mess with - and in the end, he settled for waiting it out and following after him like an overprotective parent. He was going to punish his red head severely once he was sober enough to know about it.

OOO

Sasori was sick. He blamed the alcohol entirely - and then he blamed Deidara - of course it wasn't his own fault for drinking that much and as his 'elder', Deidara should have taken the alcohol away before it got that bad - but he couldn't stay mad at the blonde for long.

He'd rubbed his back as he'd thrown up in the toilet, he'd held him steady as he showered and then helped him wash, keeping the noise levels low at all times.

Deidara had also relit the fire a few hours ago and it was at full height as Sasori sat in front of it, mulling over its comfort and wondering why Deidara hadn't exacted any punishment.

There was something bone-warming about a real fire, something primal and very secure. He'd stripped off both of his jacket and his socks by the time he smelled Deidara cooking something, the repetitive stirring making it likely to be soup. Ironic, considering they now had all sorts stocked up in the cupboards. When the blonde came to serve it to him, he eyed the off cast clothing with caution.

"I'm warm enough" Sasori took the soup and changed position, now cross legged with the large cup of soup balanced where his legs met.

"I can tell, un" Deidara flicked off his own jacket and curved his body onto his side, the furthest away from the fire's heat but still within arms distance from Sasori. "Is it making you feel worse?" Deidara eyed the soup and Sasori realised he was trying to avoid eating it or breathing it in.

"I'll give it a few minutes" He grumbled. Deidara was watching him with a hint of sympathy, but he was masking it very well. "Don't look at me like that, I know you're secretly smirking inside" Deidara rolled onto his back and laced his hands behind his head. "Can vampires get sick?" Sasori asked, testing the heat of his soup, but he put the mug back down and curled his lip at it distastefully. It wasn't appealing to him.

"No. Vampires don't get sick" Deidara sighed.

"Not at all?"

"Not pathetically" Deidara said slowly. "We don't get colds" Deidara then said. "We don't get flu or stomach bugs or…. Pneumonia" Sasori peered over in interest, his soup mug still covering half of his face as he tried again to eat it. "If and when we get sick, it's usually something to do with contaminated food. But it's more like a bad reaction than being sick"

"Like… vomit-sick? You can chuck it all back up?" Even as he said it he wasn't sure. Humans vomited what was in their stomach, and Sasori was sure that any blood consumed didn't just sit in vampires' stomachs and wait to be digested. Could vampires even _be _sick? How did they get rid of the bad blood?

"Why are you asking, un?" Deidara asked curiously. Sasori distracted himself by pretending to drink more of his soup before answering this time.

"I just wondered what'd happen when you get hungover"

"Ask a doctor" Deidara smirked. "I haven't a clue, un. You probably drink more alcohol than I do, yeah" Sasori tried to imagine a hung over Deidara and simply had an image of a drama queen.

"I think you, hungover, would be disasterous. You, sick, would be possibly cause the apocalypse" Sasori grinned. Deidara laughed.

"You'd know if I was really sick, un"

"Yeah?" Sasori said quietly.

"Hn" Deidara nodded. "But you'd never see it. I won't allow it"

"That's not fair - you stayed with me the entire time I had the flu"

"If I get sick, it won't be the flu" Deidara reasoned. "You won't be wiping my head with a cold cloth or pushing my hair from my face while I upchuck yesterday's dinner, un"

"So…you _don't _throw up?"

"I won't get sick, Sasori. Enough"

Sasori grew agitated. Yes, he supposed it was a human thing to take care of eachother while the other was sick, and he might've been a little bit annoyed that he was the only one who seemed to be in the weaker positions and he couldn't care for the blonde in any way at all - wasn't it right of him to want to know the details? To be prepared in case anything _should _happen, that he knew how to care for him?

"Is that why you won't drink from me? Is my blood bad or something-"

Deidara moved quickly, spilling Sasori's soup all over the carpet having pinned the red head down.

"I said, _enough" _

"No" Did he just whine?

"Yes" Deidara leaned closer, his cold hands against Sasori's pulsing wrists. "Drinking from you is an entirely different argument I _won't _have with you tonight, un"

"I just want to treat you like you did with me; you're pale, Human's go pale when they're ill-"

"I'm always pale" Deidara ran his tongue over his fang for emphasis. Perhaps it was just the light that was causing Sasori to think that anything was different.

"I'm sorry" He whispered, not wanting to anger the blonde - it hadn't been his intention.

"You shouldn't wish for me to be sick, just so you can play nurse. We have a bedroom for that. We can _play _there" Sasori was quiet, thoughtful. Roleplay was fun, but that hadn't been his point. "Truth?" Deidara said after a few seconds. His grip left Sasori's wrists and he sat back on his heels, still straddling Sasori's chest. "If and when, on a very rare occasion, a vampire might get sick, they aren't sick for very long"

"That's cool, I guess" Sasori said, trying to turn their conversation around.

"Do you know how often blood circulates around our system?"

"Every day" It made a full rotation around the body within that time. Sasori waited for Deidara to continue but when he just got that _'look' _back, he knew he was meant to figure it out for himself.

When vampires get sick, they aren't sick for very long.

The blood circulates around their systems every day.

"You're sick for a day?" He grimaced, remembering his week-long torment attached to his bed and confined to his room during the flu. It was hardly fair. "Just a freakin' day?"

Deidara smiled and leant in, kissing Sasori's forehead.

"If I ever get sick, I won't be anywhere near you"

"Did you just miss the _entire _point of this conversation?"

OOO

The night started off normal; they rose as the sun went down and Deidara geared up for a hunt. While he was gone, Sasori researched, and when he came back - Deidara was grumpy.

"You didn't eat anything" He frowned at the lack of evidence in the kitchen and Sasori tried to lie.

"I already washed it up and put it away"

"In half an hour?" Deidara scoffed. "I'm not stupid, Sasori" The red head frowned at his boyfriends tone; either he was grumpy, in pain, or worried. The three aways sounded the same to Sasori so he saved what little research he'd done and shuffled bravely into the kitchen.

"How was your hunt?"

"What do you want to eat, un?" Deidara was at the fridge, peering inside and ignoring Sasori's question.

"I don't know"

"Don't be a grump. Come here" Deidara had the pans out seconds later, meat sizzling in minutes and the accompanying foods laid out to be prepared, all with harsh, purposeful movements.

"I'm not going to eat all that; it's too much"

"You can freeze it for later, un" Deidara sighed at him and Sasori withered just a bit. "The instructions are here" A book was placed in front of him, open and easy to read. "I'll be watching you from over here. Go" Deidara moved away so he had plenty of room. Sasori might've been okay with it if his boyfriend hadn't seemed so annoyed.

Deidara hopped up onto the other counter, pulled his legs underneath him and fiddled with the ends of his hair. "If it's edible, you'll get dessert" He added quietly.

"We didn't buy any" Sasori grinned coyly for a split second; Deidara's own slow grin giving him doubt.

"Not the kind I was thinking of, yeah"

"Oh, you're happy about that are you?"

"Meaning?"

"What's with the attitude?"

"What attitude, un?"

"_That _attitude"

"Make your fucking food, else you won't get your dessert" Sasori gaped at the blonde, all pale and fierce and damn well determined - his eyes like blue-rimmed coal.

"I'm not sure I want dessert if you're going to be like that"

"No?"

"No" Sasori seized the book and preoccupied himself with following the instructions, leaving Deidara to simmer and boil and burn himself over on the counter by himself.

As he moved, he realised that he couldn't smell the usual blood-dirt-outdoorsy smell that he often caught post-hunt. He glanced at his blonde, not a trace of dirt on him, or blood - or even satisfaction. Was it possible for a vampire to look paler than normal?

Sasori froze when he felt Deidara's eyes on him, like he'd been harpooned in the back. His body tingled, the hairs on his arms rising to attention as his spine prickled with anxiety. Was Deidara hunting him? Or playing? He held his breath as he heard him move, slipping from the counter out of the corner of his eye.

"Dessert first" Deidara decided.

"You told me to eat first" Sasori said defiantly, heart speeding up. "You can't have it both ways-"

Sasori's body stiffened as Deidara hands tugged his jeans down and then hoisted Sasori right out of them - all but throwing him out of the kitchen and into the dining room.

"The food!" Sasori protested, if only because he hadn't burnt any of it yet and it was actually smelling quite good. And it was still on the hob, and in the oven, cooking. "Dei-"

"Won't be long, un" Deidara pounced forwards and Sasori reacted, lunging around the other side of the table, the adrenaline spiking in his veins.

Sasori backed out of the room trying to keep his composure, as Deidara all but hugged the table in the centre with his limbs ready to launch. _The game was on. _He was almost cat-like, eyes wide and body poised for attack as he watched Sasori for as long as he could - the red head inching backwards out of the dining room and into the living room.

Sasori had worked out long ago that playing the 'chase game' didn't work because Deidara was so fast and kind of impatient, so it became a game of 'chase, catch and release' - an endless cycle of being hunted, caught and toyed with, and let go again. Sort of like how Deidara hunted the food he didn't end up eating - but that was an upsetting thought.

By the time Sasori made it around the 'safe' side of the sofa, his heart was beating erratically, Deidara was a whole different type of hungry and Sasori was very attracted to it - he couldn't lie about that. Deidara feigned a move and Sasori kept still, waiting for the right moment to react. Only Deidara was impatient, and he sucked at the 'chase' game and had him pinned against the sofa's arm seconds later.

"I'm gonna' have you so many different ways, un" Deidara promised, his eyes alight with intent.

Sasori laughed, gathering his breath and his courage. He knew that look - Deidara would go all night if he'd allow it.

The blonde shirked off his T-shirt and turned Sasori around, his hip bones digging into the inner structure of the sofa as Deidara bent him over it, pressed him into it. One hand crept lower as the other one cupped his jaw with freezing fingers, a thumb stroking his chin as Deidara's chilling lips pressed butterflies across his back. Sasori arched into it and then shifted - legs apart a little further.

"Did we ever christen this, un?" Deidara murmured, his hand crossing from Sasori's chin, around his neck and back up through his hair. Sasori's head lolled down against the arm rest, his whole body on fire with each of Deidara's freezing touches.

"Can't remember" He admitted, but in all honesty he was sure they had. Deidara 'hmm'ed and the cold touches left him completely, all until one swift lunge had his back arched, head up and gasping his breaths moments later.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: I still don't own anything.**

OOO

They'd finished on the sofa and Sasori had been chased into the dining room - where the dining table had then been 'rechristened' and so had the chest of drawers in the corner. While Deidara tended to the burnt food in the kitchen, (the smell couldn't be ignored any longer) - Sasori had aimed for the bathroom to shower. Deidara and his other ideas had him against his bedroom wall before he'd even reached the bathroom door.

Deidara played rougher and Sasori felt it like pinpricks. His kisses were harder and would bruise, Sasori could feel that leftover prickle which ensured that they would. His body clenched around Deidara's, their bodies warm and sweaty and without a care in the world - against his desk, of all places. At least it was a new spot.

"Round five" Deidara declared, hovering over the red head's bare body with pride. "And I swear I'll stop"

"You said that last time" Sasori panted, closing his eyes. He was exhausted.

"I mean it, un" Deidara's kisses ran down his neck. "Just one more"

"I don't think I can" Sasori groaned, but his body hardened as Deidara's touches spread, his hands, tongue, feet, fingers, even the grazes of his hair. His _scent. _Sasori could die as he was and die completely satisfied. Deidara's fingers worked like magic, and Sasori felt round five starting. How the hell did he have this much energy?

"Br-at" He moaned, feeling the blonde's fingernails digging into his back and- "A-ah" His body reacted, shuddering before flopping backwards, spent and completely devoid of energy. His body sagged and Deidara, having not had the patience before to put Sasori against the bed, now moved him to the comforts of his blankets and pillows.

While Sasori wanted to shower and clean up, the pillows and their softness were a welcome break from Deidara's grips and nips and thrusts and hip-rocking. He ached, and the bed was almost heaven. As he debated his options, he watched as Deidara brought his fingernails into his line of sight, seeing the blood dripping there. His eyes raked over Sasori's body, as if finally realising how hard he'd taken him.

His eyes widened and Sasori watched the realisation sink in.

"Don't worry about them" He murmured, as he traced all of the vicious wounds he'd made all over Deidara's body - he didn't think himself much of a fighter but he'd sure left his mark on his lover.

Deidara flinched away, snaked out from around Sasori and instantly went - naked - into the bathroom. They'd swapped 'love marks' plenty of times and Deidara was never this concerned about it. Sasori's mind was made up and he followed his boyfriend into the bathroom. He watched as he washed his hands under the tap, as he waited for the shower to warm up. Sasori slipped into the shower and his throbbing aches went away almost instantly;

"Come in with me" He reached a hand out and the blonde got in, albeit slowly. He faced the tiled wall, back to Sasori the entire time as they washed and cleaned up.

"Dei, it's really nothing" He tried, but the blonde gave a weak smile and kept quiet.

Sasori felt his new and old wounds prickle but focussed more on Deidara's body in front of him, tracing the healing wounds - the thin white and pale markings - with his fingers. They were trembling the entire time, his muscles still feeling as strong as jelly after Round Five.

He didn't expect Deidara to take his arm, whirl him so he had his back slammed against the tiles and then hike his leg up to the blonde's hip.

"Round six?" He squeaked, surprised. "Dei, I can't-" But his boyfriend was already moving, fingers tracing - digging - hips grinding, mouth stealing every bit of flesh he could reach. Against the heat, Sasori felt rather feverish and he realised, _he hadn't been the one shaking. _Deidara's entire body was shuddering.

Sasori's hips ached, Deidara's movements now hurried and somewhat…forced.

"Stop" Sasori steadied himself, detaching himself from the blonde's grip awkwardly. "What's wrong with-" He didn't expect Deidara to whip a hand to his neck - holding his position still. Pinning him like he would his prey, not like before - not playful.

Sasori could feel his pulse pounding - the blood rushing around his body. Deidara had never used that kind of force with him - the kind that meant _'attack' _and not '_play'._

He was sure Deidara could feel it too, sense it in all ways. His eyes knew, Sasori watched as the recognition of his actions set in. His hands knew because the grip loosened just a touch. His ears twitched in the way they did when he'd caught a sound while hunting, but he pulled his body closer into Sasori's. _He's smelling me, _Sasori stilled.

"Don't move" The blonde whispered, his head lowering to Sasori's shoulder, his hair an odd golden colour now it was wet. Sasori focussed on that. "Not an inch, un"

In the movies, vampires smelling people usually signalled an interest in blood, and as Sasori would _love _for Deidara to be interested in his blood, he'd usually be turned on by it. But he was spent and his energy was low and in all honesty, it was probably Deidara trying to get himself back in order.

It had happened a few times when Sasori's family had annoyed Deidara so much that Sasori thought he'd just want to be on his own - in actual fact, Deidara was adamant that he stay with Sasori to keep his sanity intact.

With his spare hand, Deidara's fingers traced the fresh wounds he'd made along Sasori's back, a scratch for each of his sharp fingernails. Sasori shuddered - a movement - and felt Deidara's head drop into the crook of his neck.

Sasori had always been calm and collected and controlled - didn't let too much run away with him, not on the outside at least. He'd managed to work out Deidara's oddities and prepare himself for every situation - but he'd never had a reason to doubt his safety, not with him.

He had never been scared of Deidara. This wasn't something to be _scared _of… Sasori was worried. It wasn't like his blonde at all. This behaviour….it was different. Deidara didn't get like this over bad bed behaviour.

"Dei, calm down. Okay? It's nothing; I'm fine. Calm down" He repeated it over and over until Deidara finally looked at him, his blue eyes hazy and torn.

Deidara was out of the shower seconds later and Sasori's knees turned to jelly. After half an hour of wasting water, he managed to get up and turn it off, wrapping himself in a towel and achingly shuffling to his bedroom where he hoped Deidara was.

OOO

When he woke up, the sun was peeking through the curtains and he knew Deidara was in the basement. He hadn't retreated to the bedroom as Sasori had hoped, and being too exhausted to push for a response he wouldn't get, he'd simply fallen asleep.

Sasori spent the day lounging on the furniture and lighting fires and thinking. When the sun had set, Deidara came out of the basement half an hour after with his jacket on and his hair tied up ready for a hunt.

"I'm sorry, un" He apologised, remaining a sensible distance from Sasori, who promptly closed the gap and kissed his boyfriend's long-neglected lips.

"Apology accepted; do you know what went wrong?"

Deidara ran his tongue over his lip where Sasori had kissed him, his eyes shining with resolve.

"Un," He nodded once.

"So we can er…resume?" Sasori grabbed Deidara's hips and pulled their bodies closer. "With good behaviour, this time?"

"_Best _behaviour" Deidara promised, leaning in for another kiss. "But I need to hunt first" He quickly stole Sasori's mouth for a good minute before moving for the door. "Give me half an hour"

It was the usual time frame for a hunt - even if Deidara was only using the woodland surrounding their area, he said it was bad practice to assume a decent hunt would take less any less time. Sasori hoped it'd be quicker, but the blonde used up his full time and was back just as he'd said, half an hour later.

Sasori was aware that he'd glossed over his worry of Deidara's behaviour in the shower, and also aware that Deidara seemed to be completely ignoring it too. He didn't care, as long as Deidara was back to normal and they were both aware that what had happened had happened and nothing could change it. Deidara had apologised and Sasori would move on. Done.

OOO

The next night, shortly after Deidara had returned from his hunt, Sasori sensed his brother approaching before the portal appeared. He closed his book, stood up and called a warning to Deidara.

"Kisame's here!"

He heard Deidara groan but focussed on the shadow growing on the wall opposite him. "Kisame!" He greeted, watching the blue demon step out of the portal tensely.

"This has to be quick" Kisame's strong hand gripped Sasori's arm and steered him instantly into the living room where Deidara was tending to the fire. It was lit and Kisame's eyes scanned Sasori for any new wounds - but Sasori had them all covered up, one way or another. "I'm going away for a while. A mission"

Sasori's stomach plummeted. Kisame? Going _away? _

"I can't control the others" Sasori frowned. "Hidan and Kakuzu won't listen to me and Konan-"

"They're on their own mission for now - you don't need to worry about them. Zetsu is around - Home is safe. Konan is fine. I just won't be there"

"Why?" Sasori had always felt like a child next to Kisame. The demon was decades old and looked like a warrior in his mid twenties. He had the mind of a leader, the strength of a soldier and the heart of a human - something Sasori could connect with. In comparison, Sasori felt like a kid. He'd always be half human in comparison to his fully-demon older-brother - of course they weren't blood related but families were made of more than just blood. Kisame had been the first one of the group that Sasori had instantly connected with. Having him gone felt like losing the ground beneath his feet. "For how long?"

"Because I have to - and for however long it takes"

"That's vague" Sasori frowned, displeased with his answer. "Is it dangerous?"

"Don't ask stupid questions. I'll let Gaara know I'm leaving"

"Please, don't" Sasori and Deidara both deadpanned.

"You don't get an opinion, vampire" Kisame turned to the blonde. "You're not family" Deidara hissed and scowled. "Gaara will keep an eye out for you" He said to Sasori.

"Deidara won't do anything, why won't you believe that?"

"If I told you to believe that Hidan wouldn't chop off his foot for a new sword, would you believe me?"

"No, but to tell Gaara-" Sasori admitted.

"I can believe that the vampire won't hurt you as much as I want, but it's in his nature to be the predator that he is. Just like it's in Hidan's nature to sacrifice one thing for something better" Sasori saw the reasoning, but didn't admit it. Deidara was watching something else, but he'd clearly heard the conversation. "While I'm gone, please - keep Gaara informed. You know what'll happen if you don't"

When Kisame left, Sasori lay all of his affection onto his boyfriend. They hugged, kissed, made out - he even managed to persuade Deidara to let him play with his hair again. There was something soothing for them both in that task, so they sat in front of the fire for a long while as they did.

"No more sex" Deidara said suddenly. Sasori groaned, knowing that was coming.

"What if I try and arrange a schedule, or something?"

"That little psycho won't stick to a fucking schedule, un" Deidara snickered. "He delights in surprising us mid-sex and I refuse to have him stop me mid-flow, _again. _I have you on tap and I'll keep it that way"

"You can't deprive me" Sasori pouted. "I told you, I only love you for the sex"

"True" Deidara cocked his head in thought and Sasori grinned. He wasn't one to openly admit to the blonde's face those three words, _'I love you' - _but they had a habit of sneaking out during sex and Sasori had taken to joking that the only reason he loved Deidara was because of that.

Soon after, Sasori grew tired from the repetitive motions of playing with the blonde's long hair and Deidara was drifting too.

"Do you even get tired?" Sasori asked, as they curled up on the sofa for a nap, convinced that his boyfriend was complying only for his own amusement.

"Sometimes before dawn" Deidara murmured. "And when I'm weak"

"Are you weak now?" Sasori yawned.

"Yes" Deidara admitted, despite having already hunted for the night. Sasori frowned as they comfortably set up to spoon on the couch. "With you" Deidara snuggled into Sasori's neck and then draped the blanket around him. Deidara offered no warmth, but the blanket would suffice.

OOO

Sasori dreamt of stupid things, like walking in the sunlight with Deidara - somewhere extremely hot where the oceans were pure blue and the sand was light and fluffy between their bare toes. Deidara felt at hot as the sun and his body glowed in it like a God, and Sasori was insanely happy.

When he woke up with the same warmth of his dream, he enjoyed the idea of his dreams and reality merging - even for that murky second between consciousnesses, before he realised how insane it was. He peeked an eye open, facing the dead fire and the drawn curtains either side of it, the sunlight peeking under them.

Deidara's body was still curled up against his back, but just like in his dream, Deidara was warm. Sasori turned and saw the blonde was asleep. _Of course he is, _Sasori thought. _The sun is up, and nothing but a threat would wake him. _

Sasori felt the blonde's head with his hand and pulled it back with a bite of his lip. Deidara really _was _warm, and it didn't fill him with insane happiness now. He was worried. He'd slept beside and with Deidara many a time and not once was the blonde ever any warmer than a chill.

Sasori didn't want to wake him - really didn't - but slipped away with the blanket draped around his shoulders and went to the kitchen to grab a knife. He entered the room with it brandished in his hand, moving closer and closer to the sofa where Deidara lay deathly silent and still. Sasori's heart thudded.

_He should've woken up the moment I took the knife from the block. _He knew Deidara's senses were wider when he was asleep. He moved the blade down, its tip touching the edge of the sofa as he kept his distance as a precaution. The blonde didn't move an inch and Sasori tried not to panic.

Deidara wasn't reacting to the threat. An _immediate _threat.

There had to be a reason.

Once he'd noticed Deidara's change in complexion, Sasori couldn't do anything. Every time he went out of the room to occupy his time, he went back in minutes later to see if the blonde had changed at all. He tried to go back to sleep, but didn't want to miss anything.

After three hours, Sasori concluded that Deidara was 'sick'. Something was wrong with him that wasn't normal and therefore he was sick - a perfect opportunity for him to play nurse for real. The only problem was that he didn't know how to nurse a vampire.

_Vampires only get sick for the day, _he reminded himself. _It'll be out of his system by nightfall. _

He put pillows under Deidara's head and wrapped him up in a blanket. He made soup and then ate it himself because of _course _the blonde wouldn't eat it, but then wondered if he could hunt something for him instead.

He did own a gun, he could use it. Whether or not Deidara would accept it was another matter - but it was worth a try. He was out the house for five minutes - had barely surrounded himself in the woodland around their house - before he decided to go back and check on the blonde.

The sky was darkening with the arrival of dusk, Deidara should be slowly becoming more conscious. Sasori waited at his side, the lights in the room all dim around him.

When Deidara woke, he shivered and sat up, his skin paler than flour. Sasori smirked.

"You," He said pointedly. "Are sick"

Deidara faced him, his eye slightly dull with the lack of blood in his system.

"I told you that you'd know if I was, un"

"You're warm" Sasori rushed to his side, putting his hands on Deidara's arm and then gripping. The blonde's eyes narrowed.

"You're cold" He said tonelessly.

"No, I'm neutral" Sasori reasoned. Deidara took in the blanket draped around Sasori's shoulders and the fire dancing in its place; Sasori couldn't be cold. "You are warm to me; you're physically warm, Deidara" Sasori sounded a little too happy about the fact considering it meant that there was probably something wrong.

"It's the heaters" Deidara reasoned.

"When has that ever affected you? Come on, Dei! Let me play nurse!"

"Play nu-…" Deidara shoved off the blankets and jumped to his feet, his body swaying with lag. "I need to hunt"

"I'd question your ability to do so" Sasori said softly. "I don't think you're in any shape to- Dei!"

The blonde took off, tripping out of the house and into the frosty world outside. Sasori gaped at the open door, forced to close it as he waited for the blonde to return.

OOO

He heard Deidara move about in the woodland, could make out his distinct footsteps if he listened hard enough. He heard him stalking his prey, abandoning it and launching himself at some indistinct animal that wasn't expecting to be taken. Deidara stumbled in soon after, wiping the small traces of blood free from his face.

"You're disgusting"

Sasori flinched and turned, the ominous aura flooding the room as Gaara stepped through his shadow portal, pointedly looking disgusted at Deidara's appearance.

Deidara watched blankly, remaining as far away as possible - just as he had with Kisame. Sasori couldn't fault him for his patience.

Gaara turned to Sasori. "So how is the domestic life?"

"We're fine" Sasori answered. "Heating is on, Deidara is fed and I'm alive"

"All good points" Gaara agreed. "New injuries" He observed, and Sasori flinched in response. Of course Gaara's keen eyes would pick up on them - _The Shower Wounds, _he'd dubbed them - and they weren't very well hidden because Sasori hadn't known to plan for Gaara's arrival.

"You don't need to know about those" He said quickly; Gaara shifted his attention, smirking at Deidara.

"Oh, do tell"

"You don't _want _to know about those" Sasori amended, snapping his fingers at his cousin. It was probably useless, Gaara didn't understand affection - never mind understand certain references. "Leave him alone"

"Doesn't he speak? Usually he says all sorts of lovely things to me"

"He's being _polite" _

"A polite vampire?" Gaara scoffed. "I've never met one"

"Gaara, stop it- don't!" But his small cousin was already across the living room and had Deidara's body wrapped in his obedient sand-grains, holding him in midair. "Please-" His body already going limp in resignation, he watched as Deidara was squashed back up against the wall with a large sand-fist.

"Gaara - come on" Sasori blew his too-long hair from his face and waited for his extended cousin to give up. "Put him down!" It wasn't as if he could do much else against his cousin's sand attack. People rarely (never) could and that was why he was feared as much as he was. It was also the main reason Kisame had enrolled him as 'chief protector' in his stead.

"Tell me, vampire" Gaara's sand grains tightened. "What did my cousin do to deserve those marks?" Deidara said nothing and it wasn't helping his situation, but in his defence there probably wasn't anything right that he could say that Gaara would understand.

"Gaara please - it's nothing. It's fine - I made all sorts of marks on him and they're all healed up. Mine are healing - these are fine. Calm down, please"

Slowly, Gaara receded his attack; the sand grains moved back to his gourd as he moved the furthest away that he could. Deidara stiffened as he dropped to the floor, his battle-ready limbs loosening.

Sensing the blonde's anger, Sasori slipped their hands together - for both their sakes. Gaara wasn't too good with the psychological aspect of _feelings. _Physical, he could do. Touching meant connected, connected triggered care. Care fuelled love. Gaara stared at it in recognition, knowing it meant care but not understanding it at all. But at least he'd stopped. Deidara was growing calmer by the second, his hand chilled like normal.

"While Kisame is gone, no more of that" Gaara flicked a few sand grains over Sasori's wounds. "Unless you want me to misinterpret again and accidentally kill the vampire" It was clear he was annoyed because he didn't understand and Sasori knew he didn't like being in situations he couldn't comprehend.

"Okay" Sasori nodded in agreement. He might be older than his fully-supernatural cousin but right now, his fully-supernatural cousin was stronger than his half-human self. He wasn't going to argue.

"I'll inform the others" Gaara opened his portal and stepped through. "Take care, Sasori" Was his only goodbye, and he wasn't surprised that he hadn't included Deidara.

"Deidara, I'm sorry that-"

"I know" The blonde grumbled, stalking to the corridor. Sasori quickly followed, his apologies tumbling out of his mouth. Of all his family members, Gaara was the one who hated Deidara the most and it always took extra time to calm the blonde down.

They'd made their way up to Sasori's bedroom, comfy on the bed with its many blankets and warmth (in Sasori's case) and its usefulness in terms of Deidara gaining his apology in other ways than Sasori's words. That had taken up another good hour, but at least the blonde seemed to be feeling better.

"Are you okay now?" Sasori asked after a while, reaching for jaw and tracing his fingers over it.

"Hm" The blonde sounded, and then closed his eyes.

"Dei," Sasori stopped his fingers as soon as he'd noticed. Either the blonde was tired (not likely) or he was playing with him (possible) or Sasori was boring him (unthinkable!).

"Dei" He called again, moving his hands to cup the pale face and glare - just in case those eyes did open. "You can't be asleep" He uttered. "It's night time - you _can't" _

But Deidara didn't stir and his body was as still as it would have been in sleep. Sasori panicked as the night came and went and dawn broke - the blonde still sleeping on his bed. He'd kept the window curtains closed and done his best to keep all light from the room.

_He's sick, _he chanted to himself. _He's sick, he's sick, he's sick! _

It was that same horrible gut-feeling he got whenever he saw Deidara's pale-as-flour skin.

Somewhere between the confusion and the panic, sure that Deidara must be playing some kind of joke on him for his own entertainment, Sasori wrapped the blonde in a blanket and made sure the heater was still working. He had thought to burn the warmth out of him, but had been in two minds about over-heating him instead.

He'd swapped the blankets and heaters for a cool fan and a few chilled ice packs, but that seemed too extreme. In the end, he made sure the blonde was comfortable and put him flat on the bed as he would have been if he'd just dozed off. No blankets or heaters or ice packs or fans, just himself. Hopefully it would sort itself out.

He brought the old laptop into the bedroom, never too far from Deidara's side, as he tried to research all that he could on those attacks. He couldn't find anything - anybody that might've known something was either dead or missing, which didn't bode well.

Sasori napped, waking when a new night had begun and Deidara still slept.

He tried the knife thing, taking it from the kitchen block and waiting to see if the blonde stirred. He didn't, so Sasori moved closer inch by inch, up the stairs, and dared the blonde to wake with every step. Sasori could've run the blade over Deidara's throat if he'd be convinced _totally _that he really wouldn't wake. But he wasn't, so he didn't, and the knife went back and Sasori sat stumped at the end of the bed. He laced his fingers into Deidara's and found that they were warm again.

Sasori didn't know any other vampires. It was a supernatural circle that he did not move in and Deidara was adamant it remain that way. He wondered if now was a good time to talk to his family - maybe Kakuzu or Hidan might know something from their diverse travels.

_Yeah, and they'd come running in with ammunition to speed up his death! _It seemed like something Hidan would do for a laugh, and Kakuzu would do for an experiment.

"Night, un" Deidara murmured, pulling himself upright and rubbing his neck with his free hand.

"You're awake" Sasori didn't laugh, couldn't laugh no matter how relieved he was. "You're sick. I know it"

"This again?" Deidara huffed, tugged his hand free and looked around confusedly. "Your room?" He murmured.

"You're not okay - you slept for over a day - this isn't normal behaviour" But the blonde had already gone off to gather his things for his hunt. Sasori didn't bother to listen this time. He grabbed some new clothes, quickly showered and wrapped himself up in his duvet on his bed; it had Deidara's smell all over it and he breathed it in like oxygen. He needed a plan, something to get Deidara to listen.

OOO

Sasori didn't hear the blonde come back, if he did at all - and Sasori was adamant that he must've done because Deidara wouldn't have risked a stay somewhere else, not when he had a safe house and a perfectly good, sun-proof, shielded basement.

When Sasori tried to unlock the basement door, he found it solidly locked from the inside. He listened, hearing his blood move steadily around his body as he tried to hear any of Deidara's usual sounds. He was about to give up and go and make something to eat when Deidara spoke;

"Leave me alone, Sasori"

"Nope" The red head replied, frowning. "Not until you talk to me"

That was the beginning of the three days where Deidara lived in the basement.

He came out only to hunt, and always managed to move past Sasori so quickly that he couldn't be caught. On the one occasion Sasori did manage to successfully grab a bit of Deidara's jacket - the blonde refused to face him, pulled it back and carried on within a second.

By the fourth night, Sasori went down into the basement while Deidara was hunting. The space was clean, the bed sheets were crisp and unused, but the metallic smell of blood prickled at his nose. He couldn't find it - wherever it was - and chose to sit on the bed and wait for Deidara to return.

He woke up in his own bed, having felt nothing, and when he went to check, the basement door was still locked from the inside.

Deidara didn't come out to hunt that night.

OOO

Sasori forgot to light the fires and relied on the central heating of the house. He made soup because he couldn't be bothered making anything else, and he ate it outside of the basement door because he hated being further away from Deidara than he had to.

By the end of the week, he was ready to take drastic measures. He had plenty of ideas; he could call for reinforcements and force the blonde via interrogation to finally talk to him. He could bleed himself dry and wait for the blonde's reaction - he'd have to at least come out of the basement. He debated freezing himself cold and attacking the door by consequence- but the outcomes were too unpredictable.

"I love you" He called, sitting outside of the basement door with a book on his knee - a vague attempt to pretend his life didn't revolve around his boyfriend. The sun had gone down ten minutes ago, Deidara should be awake. Sasori hadn't heard the blonde's voice for nearly the entire time he'd barricaded himself away.

Deidara didn't come out.

OOO

It was random when they finally did bump into each other. Sasori had wandered into the kitchen, heedless of the timing and simply wanting something to drink, when Deidara had come back from his hunt. Sasori grabbed the spare gun from the cutlery draw and stalked the corridor to the front door, finding a very wet Deidara removing his jacket - blood free and smelling clean. Not a hint or trace of mud, dirt or animal on him.

Deidara had nowhere else to go, standing in the door in the small front hallway with his hair a dull gold because of the rain. His eyes shone bright and surprised, and Sasori raised the gun defiantly.

"Do you know how long you've avoided me?" He asked, scowling. "How long you've ignored me?" The blonde simply blinked.

"I'm sorry" Deidara murmured; Sasori's grip wobbled and he lowered the gun. Of course he wouldn't shoot his boyfriend. He was just annoyed. And his boyfriend looked _pained. _

"Talk to me" Sasori remained in the doorway - a very human way of attempting to stop the other from leaving his sight. There were so many ways Deidara could get out, mainly back out the way he came, but it was the quickest and only way through to the rest of the house. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, un" Deidara _did _look pale - and it wasn't the lack of light or the outdoor excursion. Deidara looked healthy, his previous wounds were now nonexistent and his hair looked healthier, his eyes more vibrant. But the skin…vampire or not, it looked as delicate as flour. His gut clenched again. _Wrong._

They stared at eachother for a few seconds, Deidara knowing Sasori would say something stupid, and Sasori trying to think of something smarter than _'Oh for fucks sake, just bite me and get it off your chest'. _Because the blonde clearly had an issue with _something. _

"Dei…" He stepped forwards and Deidara predictably stepped back, flattening himself into the wall. "What happened?" Sasori fisted his hands, his grip on the gun tightening. "What did I do?! What _can _I do?!"

"You can leave" Deidara said simply. "Stay with your family, stay with The Psycho for all I care - I don't want you here anymore. You can't be here"

Sasori swore his way through the painful heartbeats that struck his chest thereafter. He didn't know why, but he tossed the gun directly at the blonde in fury. It chipped off Deidara's cheekbone and skittered across the wall, falling onto the floor.

Deidara's blood dripped down his cheek and Sasori fumed, taking angry breaths as he stalked up to Deidara. He shoved the vampire against the wall with all the strength he could muster.

Deidara was still, his body burning underneath Sasori's touch. He was pale, not flushed as a normal human with a fever might be, though he felt just as hot. It was almost winter outside, the world had been slowly frosting its way to a snowy Christmas; the rain out there should have chilled Deidara to slightly above his normal cold temperature, but to be warm? Straight after coming inside, from that cold rain? Sasori panicked. _Wrong! _

"Something's wrong; tell me what it is-"

He was pinned against the floor in half a second. _De-ja-vu. _

It was so quick that he'd barely even sensed the blonde's intent to move. Deidara knocked the wind from his lungs, the impact on the floor whacking his head.

"What are you doing?" He gasped, swinging his fist automatically and hearing Deidara's face connect with it. His wet blonde hair went everywhere, loose with no tie in sight, though his face simply crunched to the side and halted. Sasori didn't expect him to retaliate back.

He wasn't stupid, knew that Deidara was a natural predator - Kisame had warned him enough times, but the blonde had never even laid a fang on him - to hit him so violently was an inconceivable thought. Or at least, Sasori thought so.

Deidara's fist - so, so strong - right on Sasori's cheekbone changed that thought immediately. Deidara's other hand went for his neck and Sasori lashed out again.

"Dei!" It wasn't his playful assertion of strength, or even his inarguable grip that he sometimes used when he thought Sasori wasn't being reasonable. It was pure force and was crushing his airways - he knew Deidara's intention, and that might also have been why he'd instantly retaliated. He just didn't understand _why. _There were so many things wrong with that situation that-

Deidara staggered back, tripping over Sasori's legs which had been flailing for any sort of grip or fight but they were wet - slickened from the water falling from Deidara's body. Sasori's fingers ghosted his neck as he sucked in breaths, feeling his chest crunch with every one. That had been worse than the shower. His head swam with nausea - he'd probably be concussed from the contact with the floor.

"Dei" Sasori croaked, crawling over to the still body that was slumped over, legs pitched up at the knees, his long arms draped over them with his hands shaking slightly. They fisted as Sasori touched them, then jolted as he tried to hold them.

Just as Sasori thought he'd gotten somewhere, Deidara's hand swiped him another hit. His cheek stung. His body ached, his eyes prickled and his chest _hurt. _

"If you're trying to drive me away, it won't work" Sasori's heart sank, even as he said those words, because somewhere his mind was telling him that it _might_. He didn't know how to handle a volatile Deidara - the blonde had always been…ordinary.

Deidara groaned, saying something. He wobbled to his feet, unsteady and so, so pale. Sasori watched in disbelief as the blonde vanished a second later, right out the front door and back into the woods.

_Not safe, _Deidara had said. Sasori's hands fisted.

Determined, he grabbed two of his jackets and his chunky, weather-proof winter coat - always one in every home - and double socked his feet. He took his ring off his finger and put it on the chain around his neck - just in case. He then shoved on a pair of boots, wrapped a scarf around his neck and forced gloves onto his hands.

After a quick double check, retrieving the tranquiliser gun and a woolly hat later, he followed Deidara out into the cold.


	7. Chapter 7

**7: OOO**

Deidara's body felt sluggish and drugged. He recognised the symptoms, could feel the burning where the gun had shot through to his muscles. Something was lodged in there, but his body was numb to it. He felt oddly calm, lying face down in the rapidly falling snow. His mind had gone blank, unable to fathom what had happened. One minute he'd been walking out of the door to keep his distance from Sasori, and the next….he was face down, paralysed in the snow.

He could see the trees, eerily lit by the moonlight with their naked branches like bony hands. They stretched shadows over the drifting snow, but all Deidara could make out was grey.

_It happened again; _he remembered, his thoughts slowly coming back to him. _I'm losing time. _

And he was burning. The blood in his body was boiling to the point where he was sure steam was rising from his exposed skin.

_I am sick. _He admitted, silently and to himself. _There's something wrong with me, and Sasori was right. The black outs at the club were the beginning, then came the adrenaline rushes, the need for something more, the carnal instinct for fucking, the relentless headaches - the unyielding craving to feed - unable to keep it down…_

The temperature had dropped and the animals that frequented the surrounding woodland had disappeared.

His fingers moved in the snow, testing their ability to move. A new thought; _My wound is lodged with a tranquiliser. _

It explained the sluggishness of his reactions, as opposed to a gunshot would that would have caused a different feeling.

He sniffed around, trying to scent out the closest way back to the house so he could barricade himself in the basement again. He'd been doing it for Sasori's safety, knowing the red head wouldn't just _leave. _But when the headaches started and the tiredness crept up on him, and then losing chunks of his time and memory… he'd promised to himself that the next time The Psycho came, he could happily take Sasori away from him.

Deidara would deal with his on his own, but he wouldn't risk Sasori's safety anymore than he-

"No" He murmured, eyes wide as he locked onto another scent. He groaned and forced his body to move, slowly managing to his knees and then to a pathetic crawl. _Warm and cinnamon, _his nose told him, but his brain screamed _Sasori-smell. _Accompanying that familiar scent was the after-taste of iron. It stuck in the back of his nose like a cold and made him nauseated with every shuffle closer.

_He's bleeding. _Deidara dragged his body closer, willing it to be anything other than Sasori's corpse. _Please be inside the house. _As the scent got closer, and Deidara was nowhere near the house, his stomach plummeted.

The temperature was hovering around zero. The snow was falling thick and fast and was filling the woodland with a clean slate.

The smell of blood was almost sickening. He didn't know how long he'd slept and so in that respect, the blood was appealing. But it smelt thick and rich and that usually meant enough for a puddle.

Sasori couldn't afford to lose masses of his blood - he was only a halfling-

And there he was, almost lost in the snow.

The blood wasn't as bad as Deidara originally thought - he wasn't lying in a pool of it - but it was slick enough to prove its damage.

And Sasori had shifted, his arctic-wolf self lying on his side, breathing erratically. His upper body was the source of the bleeding, a great tear across the left side and around to the back, damaging muscle so Sasori wouldn't have been able to move, much less run, without severe pain. _Halfling, _Deidara chanted to himself. Perhaps a pure-bred arctic-shifter might be able to overcome these injuries, but Sasori was half human.

"Fuck" Deidara's legs gave out, seeing Sasori's closed eyes and his snow-white body wrapped in clumped, matted, bloodied fur. Deidara had hunted in that woodland many a time before and had found not _one _predator that could or would have approached and attacked a human like that.

The only predator in the woods was himself - and the evidence was tucked under his fingernails.

While the snow and the temperatures continued to fall, Sasori would remain in that state. It was why he endeavoured to keep so warm all the time, why others made _sure _to keep him so warm… shifting randomly was a no-go area for the red head who liked his human lifestyle.

Sasori accepted what he was and controlled it - used it sometimes for leverage, but he never truly _wanted _to change. He always hated the change just before and just after, where the worlds merged and his thoughts grew weaker and less clear before he'd wake up not entirely sure what he'd just done.

Deidara loved all sides of his boyfriend, even the beautiful animal he'd become - so much like himself, an instinctual, curious predator. He wouldn't like him dead.

_Need to warm him up, _Deidara forced himself to think clearly. It was _his _damage, _his _fault and he would bloody well fix it. He gingerly moved the arctic wolf that was his boyfriend into his arms, hoping to whoever was listening that he _wouldn't wake up. _The last thing he needed to deal with was staring into his boyfriend's wolf-eyes - those eyes that would look back at him and see him for the predator that he was. Those eyes that wouldn't immediately recognise him as _'Deidara', _but as _'threat'. _

_It's what you wanted, _he reminded himself, but he knew that was a lie. He wanted Sasori out of the way for his own safety - he didn't want him _dead. _

He struggled to the house and guiltily dropped the wolf by the fireplace in the living room. He immediately set to work on the fire, grabbing blankets from everywhere and shoving them over the body.

When a wave of nausea hit him, he convinced himself to ignore it as he found the rope and bound Sasori's front legs together, and then the back legs. He didn't want Sasori to freak out and injure himself. Firstly, he took off the ring on the chain that was still around Sasori's neck.

He then set about fixing the wounds. The garish rip from Sasori's side across his back was the worst of it, but there were smaller cuts on the pads of his paws that were probably caused from fighting. His claws were broken for the most part, and there was a definite kink to his front right leg. It would be better to fix them up when he'd shifted back, but if he couldn't get a grip on the blood loss then Sasori wouldn't make it that long.

When the fire roared and crackled and he was convinced that he'd done all he could do, he attempted to fix his own wounds.

He was mortified to find just the tranquiliser darts - all three of them - as his only injuries. It was entirely unfair. He sat across from Sasori, staring at the wolfs body and watching every rise and fall of his fur.

OOO

**YEARS AGO,**

_The little thing was panicking and running every way it could. Of course it would, that little bundle of fur would only register him as a 'threat' - and being as young as he was, there was nothing the fluffball could do other than hide._

_"Sasori, come on" Deidara was on his stomach across the floor, sprawled out with impatience as the little white arctic wolf shot under the bed and sank down. "I'm not going to hurt you, un"_

_The thing wouldn't listen, rooting itself down and letting out a growl that sounded like a sore throat. Deidara was not used to uncontrollable shifters. Most shifters of wolves were kept trained and secure within their packs and relations until such 'uncontrollable' situations were resolved. It was an embarrassment to be changing to suddenly and recklessly without any thought or provocation - he was lucky they were still in the apartment._

_ Plus, Sasori had told him that his grandmother Chiyo had already trained him enough to hide his 'condition' from the humans. Deidara was sure he'd had this shifting-thing under control. _

_They'd just got back from one of their 'outings' where Deidara would show him something new of the Arcane Territories - a weekend sort of homework that his grandmother had set Sasori to encourage him with his confidence there. He wasn't wet, and couldn't catch a chill. Deidara had been stunned when the eight year old had suddenly dropped and shifted and shot away within seconds._

_Deidara held out his hand, wondering if his scent might register somewhere in the back of Sasori's mind - clearly nothing else was going in. The little wolf was wide eyed and twisty-eared with heightened senses galore. _

_It was a white furry ball of fluff. His little red head from the human world, who had relatives in Suna of all places (known for its long daylight hours and high temperatures) - was reduced to a shaking ball of arctic fur. _

_"Won't hurt you, un" Deidara shifted closer and the pup hankered down, whining with his paws close to his nose. "Damnit if you don't get out I will grab you by the neck and drag you. I can't handle you like this, un" Deidara shot his hand under the bed and brought it back mangled. _

_Sasori couldn't 'sass' him back like he normally might, but it didn't mean he could give it a go. "That's it" Deidara shot up, pried the bed frame up and over and watched the fluff ball race away with terrified yelps._

_Deidara grabbed the pointless duvet and raced forwards, shoving it ahead of him and onto the wolf's cornered position at the end of the corridor. He then flung his body on top of it, keeping his arms and legs down and then drawing them closer and closer until he could feel the lump secured and still underneath him and the blanket. _

_"Calm down, un" He murmured, feeling the shaking increase and the whining elongate. "Calm down" He scooped the blanket up, keeping the wolf inside it like a sack the entire time until the wriggling and shaking and whining came to a stop. When he wondered if he might accidentally suffocate it, he put the bundle of wolf and blanket on the sofa and tried to find the snout. Once located, he made a break in the blanket for the head and then proceeded to wrap the rest of him up. After a long hour, the fur gave way to skin and Sasori eventually opened his eyes._

_"You fucking shifted on me. What gives?" Deidara snapped, his head aching from concentrating so hard. He'd not let his attention slip in case anything went wrong - he'd never dealt with a child shifter or wolf before and having Sasori do it so suddenly… Sasori's eyes welled._

_"I didn't mean to!"_

_"You told me you were warm enough, un"_

_"I was!" When Deidara gave him 'the look', he mumbled, "Maybe it was the cold drinks"_

_"You said they were fine, un"_

_"I thought they were!"_

_"I'm never buying you a cold drink again, yeah" Deidara smiled though and Sasori half-smiled back._

_"I'm sorry I worried you" He said softly. "Could you maybe…get me some pants?" Deidara might've blushed had he been human - and Sasori definitely was. _

OOO

**NOW:**

Under the blankets, as his body temperature began to grow and the wolf shifted back to human form.

Deidara thought it was the worst thing he'd ever witnessed as his human body tried to assume the injuries of the wolf. That tear across his back that looked savage on an animal would be causing pain beyond belief. The cuts on the pads of his paws would be painful scuffs on the palms of his hands, his broken claws would be shattered nails. The kink to his front right leg would make for a plausible broken wrist at best, arm at worst. Had there been any broken ribs? There was cause for possible puncture during the change, if there were. Though he'd patched up a wolf's injuries, those wouldn't hold for long during the change, or be much use to a human afterwards. Deidara might've attacked a wolf, but Sasori would bare the repercussions as a human-bodied casualty. He'd need to see that they were fixed and treated as such once Sasori was back in his usual state.

It was unfortunate that Sasori had been led facing the way Deidara had been sat. As soon as those muddy eyes opened to him, Deidara's stomach clenched with guilt.

Neither of them said anything, Deidara sure that if he could - he'd be crying. Sasori was, his eyes filling up with tears and falling down his cheeks in rapid succession.

"It hurts" He whispered, his body shuddering underneath the mass of blankets, his wrists and ankles loosely bound. "Dei, it _hurts" _

He wanted to comfort him, but knowing he'd done the damage in the first place prevented him from moving an inch closer. Didn't Sasori know? Surely he knew that Deidara was to blame for the entire situation they were currently in.

"Dei" Sasori choked, his eyes pleading. "Don't freak out on me" _Oh, he knows. _

Deidara wasn't aware he was freaking out. If he was, he had no right to.

He stood up; Sasori was conscious and the waiting was over. The situation was now something that Gaara's limited emotions could deal with and it was probably for the best that Deidara contact him.

"D-Don't!"

Deidara continued into the other room, hearing Sasori's breaths quicken and his movements shuffle, and he guessed that Sasori had figured out that his ring was missing, or that he was trying to undo the ropes.

"Not Gaara!" He heard Sasori shout, his throat sounding as rough as gravel. _I did that, _Deidara reminded himself. "Dei, please. G-get back in here - Don't call Gaara"

If Deidara was the adult he thought himself to be, then he'd call Gaara regardless of what his boyfriend wanted him to do. He was a danger to Sasori and Gaara was the most efficient way of forcing the red head away from him.

But…Sasori….

"Why shouldn't I?" He asked, more to hear Sasori attempt to argue his way out of it, keep him distracted.

"Because I'm asking you not to" Sasori replied; it wasn't enough. He put Sasori's ring to the wall and silently called for Gaara. The shadow closed and the message would echo in there until Gaara received it, which shouldn't be too long.

Deidara silently retraced his steps to the living room and hovered in the doorway. Sasori was sat on the floor, three blankets over his body as he tried to work out the best upper body position for his injuries to be pain-free in as he fumbled with untying the ropes. "It was my fault; I went out there" He whispered, spying Deidara at the doorframe. "Don't punish your-"

"Don't" Deidara scowled as Sasori opened his mouth to retaliate. "This is my fault and we both know it, un"

"But I - I went outside and-"

"And nothing. You went outside" Deidara shook his head in disbelief. "You'd have been fine doing just that if I hadn't attacked you, un" Which all of the evidence was proving.

"It's not your fault, brat - listen to what I'm telling you" Sasori gasped and gripped his stomach.

"There's pain medication to your right. I'll keep myself in the basement until Gaara comes for you"

"Deidara, don't - _please. _Can you just untie me, we can talk-_" _

"It shouldn't be long, un"

"Dei!"

OOO

He'd finally managed to undo the ropes, but wasn't convinced that it had been worth the additional pain he was feeling because of it. He'd then done the best he could to fix up his injuries after taking obscene amounts of pain killers to try and numb everything.

Deidara had done a good job of bandaging him up wolf-form, but those were either too tight or too loose for his human body. He shakily managed to sort it; Deidara wasn't coming out of the basement to help him and he refused to alert anybody else to their disasterous situation. Hell, if Gaara knew - his family would within the hour.

At first he'd hoped that Gaara wouldn't notice the message at all, but that was wishful thinking because Gaara was as diligent as they came.

He changed into some new clothes and hoped that by some miracle, Gaara wouldn't notice the injuries - or the brilliantly clean living room and the rearranged rug to hide the blood stained wooden flooring.

Then he hoped that perhaps Deidara had gotten it wrong somehow - delivering the message - and so maybe there wasn't any message for his cousin to receive. But Deidara knew how to do such a simple thing, he wouldn't mess it up. He'd taken the ring with him into the basement, too; Sasori couldn't even send word to Gaara that it was a mistake and really, there was no need to come.

In the end, all Sasori could do was hope that Gaara would miss the injuries and wait. Sasori found that his wounds weren't as bad as he'd originally suspected; sure, they were like tears down his back and the pain meds had probably dulled his worries, but they only hurt occasionally and Deidara had done a fantastic job of shielding them from any friction against the bandages or his shirt. His hands were dusted with grazes, his fingernails cracked and maybe missing a few, but he'd plastered those up and told himself to grow a pair.

He convinced himself his wrist was a sprain, but the swelling was looking more like a break. But he told himself that could've been a total arm dislocation and suddenly a sprain was manageable.

He was sat against the wall leading down to the basement again, awkwardly on his side so that his arm and shoulder took the brunt of his weight. He had no book in his lap, no ideas in his head and no motivation to do anything when he felt the ominous presence, the portal shifting open across from him.

Gaara took one look at his cousin and instantly boiled with rage. His eyes fell on Sasori's fingers, wrapped in medical tape and plasters, and then slipped to his bandaged wrist.

"What did he do?" He ordered. When Sasori refused to move or say anything, Gaara shifted into action. The heating was turned on, the nearest fires were checked, another blanket was found and draped over him and something quick and basic and warm was put in his hands. Sasori's head was fuzzy and his body was perfectly calm; perhaps the painkillers had reached their peak.

"Now will you explain?" Gaara asked, an odd look on his doll-like face. Sasori didn't think Gaara had ever looked so…eager.

"Don't" Sasori flinched, his voice naught but a whisper. The only thing Gaara was eager for was an excuse to kill Deidara.

"Did he do this?" He still had a mark on his face, Gaara's fingers motioning to it but not touching.

"We had a misunderstanding; you can leave"

"But you called me" Gaara stated, confused. He couldn't tell who had 'called' him - only that the 'call' had come from Sasori's ring - which Deidara still had. There'd never been an occasion for Deidara to (steal and) use Sasori's ring for anything - and Deidara didn't have one of his own. The thought had probably never crossed Gaara's mind because stealing a family members ring was something akin to treason in their family.

"Then I'm _un _calling you" Sasori shot. "Just go away"

"What's wrong?" Gaara stilled, lowering himself onto his knees as he studied his cousin's depressed expression with those eyes that always tried so hard to understand. "Tell me what's wrong"

"And give you the perfect excuse to- no, just no" Gaara watched in expectation and Sasori finally gave in. "Damnit, I'm being serious," He started.

"With that face, I'd expect nothing less" Gaara shrugged and motioned for him to continue.

"… he's…I think he's sick"

"Vampires don't get sick" Gaara confirmed instantly. "They don't have time to be" He explained, and Sasori frowned in confusion. "Their blood circulates their system in a day. If they drink contaminated blood, there's no way to get it out of their system before it starts to circulate through the body. They're dead before they know it"

_Sick for a day, _Sasori had thought. _More like dead in a day. _He hadn't realised…and Deidara must've known.

"There's something wrong with him, Gaara" Sasori said softly. "He's not himself. He sleeps through the night as well as the day sometimes. He…he's never attacked me before. Not like…"

"Attacked you?" Gaara growled.

"He's pale. Don't look at me like that - he's _pale" _Sasori continued, hoping to shift Gaara away from any mention of the word 'attack'.

"Is he in the basement?" Gaara's jaw twitched, a possible smile forming.

"He keeps holing himself up in there…can stay in there for days"

"Has he fed?"

"I don't know anymore" Sasori whispered. He knew Deidara could go for days without blood but only if he was in perfect health. Being darted with three tranquilisers wasn't even close.

"Shit," Gaara offered a rare smile. "Is it that bad? Is he going to die?"

"It's nothing to smile about" Sasori snapped. "There's something wrong with him, and I can't figure it out and you're fucking desperate to kill him and it's pissing me off-" That was when he heard that sound, _retching. _Heaving and human and _sick. _

Gaara stilled, the possible-smile slipping from his face as curiosity took over.

"I told you" Sasori's head swam. "Something isn't right; Gaara - _don't kill him_-"

But the small red head had already pried the door from its locks and hinges, his sand grains everywhere as he stormed to the bottom of the steps. Sasori followed instantly, hovering over his cousin's shoulder and spying his boyfriend bent over the small sink.

Blood; the smell of it burned his nose.

Deidara retched, the horrible sound of the contents meeting the sink filling the space. Gaara hissed a clear dislike and Sasori fought to keep on his feet. His knees went numb, his body feeling cold and his spine prickled with sweat. Or was it blood? Had it leaked through the bandages? Had they torn?

Deidara dropped to the floor, writhing. Sasori stumbled awkwardly under the rail, and ran to him ignoring his own wounds, keeping Deidara's body turned in the recovery position. Another stupid human movement but he didn't know what else to do. His side and back ached where Deidara had swiped him, but it was nothing compared to the agony of watching his boyfriend's health deteriorate in front of him.

Gaara watched and it was making Sasori angrier by the second.

"Do something!" He begged, as if his younger, smaller cousin would know what to do. As if he would even _help. _

"Come with me" Gaara's hand outstretched and Sasori laughed at the idea.

He refused and Gaara grew impatient. The room darkened with dread and fear as the demon that Gaara housed made its displeasure known.

Sasori knew it, didn't fear it so much as find it an unbelievable force, but Deidara was _sick. _Sasori wasn't going anywhere.


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: I really hope this isn't going to get too complicated . enjoy anyway! As usual, I own nothing!**

**OOO**

When he woke up, Sasori was in a familiar bed that wasn't North Dakota and he realised he was Home. Gaara was sitting at the end of the bed in an arm chair looking a tad apologetic, if possible, and fiddling with Sasori's ring on a small broken chain. Had he torn it away from Deidara?

His family were around him, all with arms crossed and severe expressions on their faces except Konan. He fought the urge to cry in despair. Deidara wouldn't be here.

"You need to explain" Kisame ordered. His body looked tortured, and Sasori was briefly reminded that his brother had been on a mission. Was it over?

"Deidara's sick - I have to go back" Sasori tried to get up from the bed but his body was paralysed, numb from the neck down. His eyes welled up with frustration. "Zetsu!" He groaned.

"We're sorry" The schizophrenic sighed apologetically. "We're fixing your…injuries"

"And vampires don't get sick" Kakuzu explained; Sasori felt his tears threaten but held them back out of anger; he wouldn't give Gaara the satisfaction.

"Konan, please" He appealed to her, their matriarch of the family. "I need to go back to him; something's wrong"

Sasori caved. He told them all about the original attack, recalled to the word the exact account that Deidara had given about the vivisection, how he'd been fine and then little by little, things had started to happen that were…odd. The strange animalistic quirks - the seemingly insatiable desires…

And then finally in the woods…where he'd gone looking for Deidara and the blonde had been lying in the snow half-conscious with sickness or hunger. How he had tried to wake him up, how Deidara had reacted and swiped Sasori away, attacking him like he would his prey. How, between the blood-loss and his ripped and shredded clothing, Sasori had succumbed to the cold and it had caused him to shift.

Hidan seemed annoyed at the whole thing, Kakuzu perplexed, Kisame angry and Zetsu intrigued. Konan was neutral as ever and Gaara was quietly raging in his chair. Sasori scowled at him.

He should've just told them when he'd first suspected something was awry.

"I'm willing to work with whoever wants to chop the vampires head off" Gaara nodded seriously at his plan.

"You're not killing him" Sasori glared. "He's _sick. _He needs my help - I have to-"

"If he _is _sick," Kisame frowned, folding his arms in concern. "You're not going anywhere near him"

"If it was contagious, wouldn't he have already been infected?" Hidan uttered quietly.

"No; it just rules out _airborne _as a suspect. It could be transferred via liquids, a virus or bacteria" Kakuzu replied.

"Did he drink from you?" Sasori chose to ignore his cousin's stupid question because _of course _Deidara had never done such a thing. Everything he _had _done had been for the sole purpose of keeping Sasori away and protecting him. He realised his silence might've been the wrong tactic when Kisame growled in warning.

"No - no, he's never…" But there was the incident in the shower. Would that count? Fluids?

"The wound" Gaara deadpanned. "The vamp did that with his own claws, right? What if _that _gets infected" Sasori gingerly touched his bandages and tried not to think about it. _He doesn't have claws, _he thought instead. _They're just sharp nails. _

"Gaara, what did you do with him?" Sasori asked concernedly. "What did you do with my boyfriend?" Because Gaara wouldn't have just _left _Deidara, surely. Did they put him somewhere else? The teen was much too sadistic to not play some sort of prank on a defenceless prey - disorienting him might actually work. But that glint in those blackened eyes…

"I didn't do anything" The red head sighed. "Which is to say, I left him on the floor in his own blood-vomit"

Sasori shoved his head back into his pillow and slammed his eyes closed.

"I did leave a note" Gaara supplied, as if it'd help any. "Telling him you were safe with us and that I wish him all the very best with his recovery"

"Fuck off, Gaara" Sasori muttered. "Just get out"

"I thought it was a nice thing to do, considering"

"Gaara!" Sasori yelled. "Get the fuck out!"

"No" The red head refused, slouching back in his chair with complete defiance.

The air was thick with tension and Gaara's aura of 'impending doom' seemed to spread.

"I'll keep an eye on the vampire for you" Kakuzu sighed. "I'm less likely to kill him, and if he did turn on me I'm more likely to recover" It was a sound argument - the demon was notoriously hard to kill.

"But we were going to fucking raid the-"

"You can find someone else or go alone, Hidan"

"You fucking know I won't" Hidan grumbled. "Fine - gimme' a job. We'll finish this up faster with the two of us"

"You can kill the vampire and have done" Gaara suggested.

"You're not killing my boyfriend" Sasori reminded his cousin, if only because Gaara looked so intent on it. "You know what you can do?" He seethed. "Go and find Chiyo. At least she'll be useful"

"Tell me what to do again and I'll tear that freak into pieces and feed him to the rats" Gaara threatened. Kisame sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Find. Chiyo" Sasori backfired.

They both glared at eachother until Kisame clamped a hand on Gaara's shoulder.

"Go on" He urged softly, and Gaara rocked up from the chair and pressed his ring into the wall furiously.

"If you let that vampire anywhere near my cousin, I _will _make a move on that Uchiha boy" He threatened. Kisame nodded gravely.

"I understand"

"What boy?" Sasori asked once Gaara had left. "What's Gaara up to?"

"He's temporarily sheltering someone of interest" Kisame explained vaguely.

"But the Uchiha's?" Sasori frowned. They were renowned for their super-human abilities and intelligence - a whole different level of _better. _They could definitely put up a competent fight against any of the supernatural kind and win - if their tactics and unfair weapons were used. Although they weren't much of a threat unless provoked, they'd always seemed shifty with their exceptional defence mechanisms.

"Nevermind them" Kisame waved the matter aside.

"Where's the vampire at?" Kakuzu asked.

"North Dakota House" Sasori said cautiously. "Probably still in the basement, why?"

"Why do you think?" Kakuzu grabbed the medical bag and found the nearest wall, ring to it. "Don't worry; I'll try not to kill him" It wasn't a definite, but at least he sounded more sympathetic of Sasori's situation than Gaara had. "Hidan, are you coming?" The pale demon sighed, swore like it was the biggest inconvenience and then followed Kakuzu through.

"What's he going to do?" Sasori asked nervously to anyone who would answer.

"He'll probably keep the vampire in the basement - it's the best place for him" Kisame shrugged. "He'll gather the usual - blood samples, habits, symptoms…"

"What if he can't do anything?" Sasori panicked. "Would he kill him? Think he's putting him out of his misery? He wouldn't tell me, would he?"

Kakuzu was firstly a bounty hunter for the higher ups, collecting the demons and supernatural kind that had either escaped their clutches or who were quickly becoming a danger. As of late, half of them had been missing and he and Hidan had been trying to track them down.

When he wasn't working, Kakuzu usually did strange things in his lab - shared with Zetsu and his many, many botanical concoctions - which were sometimes medicinal and sometimes not. He _did _know a lot about fixing people, healing wounds and heavy trauma - so he was sort of the family doctor. But Deidara wasn't family. Deidara _had _been a possible job for him at one point, and as a vampire with no _clan, _well that was just asking for trouble in Kakuzu's mind. He'd been waiting for the vampire to slip up for a long while - but Sasori wasn't convinced he'd kill the blonde just yet.

"That's why we'll have Chiyo as a last resort" Konan said softly, her warm hand still holding Sasori's. She'd been quiet as ever through most of their arguing and Sasori felt immensely guilty. God knows what she must've been thinking, but her presence was enough to keep a fight from breaking out.

"You rest up-" Kisame stopped, suddenly looking alarmed. "Shit…I have to get back. Ko?"

The girl smiled and nodded and Kisame left.

"We'll be in the lab" Zetsu left a bottle of something at the table next to Konan. "Let us know if anything changes"

"I can feel the rest of my body now" Sasori twitched his fingers to prove his point and then flicked his ankle.

"We made it short term" Zetsu smiled with pride and then left. Usually his paralytics lasted long-term because it was more beneficial - short term was pointless and he'd not had the patience to try and bother with working it out. Now it seemed he'd had an excuse to make it work.

"I didn't mean to worry you" Sasori apologised to Konan. "I know how you all feel about Deidara and I keep getting told that vampires don't get sick and it just seemed too stupid to bother asking for help"

"Don't worry about that" Konan squeezed his hand comfortingly. She didn't have the tightest grip, but it had more meaning than anything.

OOO

The first day was the hardest, knowing that Kakuzu was gathering information and Hidan would be making jokes and Sasori was still in bed.

Konan stayed with him in silent company, probably to observe his recovery. It would take a while - he didn't heal very fast, but that didn't mean he was an invalid. He worked on sitting up for the day, eventually managing to help Konan help Hidan and Kakuzu by tracking down those disappearing creatures.

It kept his mind off his boyfriend and he found the work rather soothing, but Konan was looking tired.

"Are you okay?" He asked softly, after catching her eyes staring at some blank point on the wall without a break for a whole three minutes.

"Hm" She sounded, a brief nod appearing before she looked back at her maps and witchy devices.

"It's quiet, not having everyone around" He tried, and the smallest smile appeared on her face. "You must get so lonely now he's gone" He whispered, but she didn't answer and focussed more intently on her work. Sasori berated himself furiously and went back to his work, trying to ignore it. He'd talk to Kisame later, he'd know what to do.

OOO

**Interlude.**

Sasori's parents had been happy with their lives in the Human Realm despite their bloodlines linking them to the Supernatural ones, more specifically the Arcane Territories - the more peaceful and co-habitant of the supernatural worlds.

When they realised that their son had inherited his mothers odd, arctic ability, they instilled in him the importance of keeping it quiet and controlled around the humans - Sasori's grandmother was the one to teach him how, along with the laws of the Arcane Territories and the right that Sasori had to be there, if he wished.

Being six years old and having just lost both of his parents, Sasori was more content familiarly playing 'human' than he was comfortable about leaving.

His grandmother took care of him for a long while in the human world, reinforcing more of the supernatural teachings into his every-day life and spending weekends meeting his 'extended cousins' - Gaara, Temari and Kankuro in the Arcane Territories. Sasori was eight years old when a chance run-in with a pretty, long haired and very charming blonde vampire had him feeling much better about the place.

He spent more time in the Arcane Territories after that; his grandmother took him into town with her every weekend from his eighth birthday and he exused himself to play with his new 'friends'. Of course he had a few, a couple of little demons and a few witches and shifters, but he spent the afternoons with them and then the few hours after nightfall with Deidara. More often than not, things worked out okay if Sasori was kept warm and - as he'd suddenly learned - not to drink too many cold drinks. Apparantly internal body heat was something else he'd yet to fully comprehend.

He always met Chiyo at the same spot bang-on nine o'clock human-time and she'd take him back to the human realm and order him to bed.

By the time he was eleven, he was much more optimistic about his new life and place in the Arcane Territories. He continued his school teachings in the human realm during the week and spent the weekends away in the territories with his grandmother, in her small apartment there, sneaking out during the night to find Deidara.

When he was thirteen, that ended abruptly once she finally caught on and she quickly changed their 'weekend trips' to Suna instead - which Sasori knew was still in the Arcane Territories, but far enough out for him to not be able to contact his vampire. He knew she'd done it for a few reasons - his _'hormones' _being one of them and something about vampires being able to use it to their advantage. Sasori really didn't care.

He liked his cousins well enough, but their little village in Suna was known for its long daylight hours and blazing heat. Chiyo hadn't taught him about how to make portals yet and he always felt slightly stranded there - and there was no possibility of Deidara coming to get him because of the conditions. There had been that one escape attempt, but that had angered everybody involved.

OOO

**Flashback.**

"Please don't" Sasori begged, eyes wide and overloaded with unshed tears. His chest was moving up and down frantically, his voice choked with panic. "Deidara,_ please" _The blonde's apartment was still with quiet anger, and Sasori thought it was worse than anything.

"Why the fuck did you think this was a good idea?" Deidara's fists clenched as he paced steadily, the flushed and panting red head sat huddled safely in a nest of his blankets.

"I'm sorry" The thirteen year old refused to let the tears fall, but his face was flushed out of despair. His rapid-fire explanation had left him breathless. "I'm _sorry. _Just let me explain"

"You can explain to your grandmother when I kick your ass straight back to Suna and get my place Sealed from you completely - for good"

"Why won't you listen?" Sasori's hands clenched the blankets as he glared through the tears. "I want to stay with you; I don't need her, I don't want them. I just want you"

"That's not a reason to lie!" Deidara shot. "You told me she was okay with this, un - that they were all okay with this; I believed you"

Deidara had been totally convinced that Sasori had told his family that he was staying with the vampire for the night. When Sasori had been unable to sit still, restless and unable to hold in the lie, Deidara had caught onto it with both teeth and his jaw locked and Sasori had caved. He'd packed his bags and basically run away - finding some willing asshole to portal him to the Arcane Territory market from Suna, where Sasori then walked up to find Deidara's apartment and they'd enjoyed a whole four hours of ignorance.

"I'm _sorry" _

"You're going to get me killed and more, Sasori"

"No" He whined. "I won't let them - we can just-"

"We're not doing anything; I told you, I'm taking your ass back home to your cousins. Daylight be damned"

"Don't you love me at all?" Sasori wriggled, uncomfortable.

"You're just a child" Deidara snapped, scooping up Sasori's things and tossing them back into his bagpack.

"I'm thirteen!" He fired back.

"It's illegal and wrong in all kinds of ways - I know you understand that"

"But I love you"

"No you don't" Deidara had the bag packed in seconds and then refilled his own. Once they were together on the bed, Sasori was watching him with more hurt in his expression that Deidara ever wanted to see.

"Why don't you…w-why…would you-…I j-just want-"

"You shouldn't have told me this was okay" Deidara murmured. "Going away like this, do you know what they're going to think? They're going to think I kidnapped you, un"

"No they won't" Sasori finally let the tears fall, slipping down his cheeks.

"Stop that, you're making yourself worse" Deidara took Sasori's chin, feeling it burning and clammy underneath his touch. "Calm down"

"It's not fair" He grumbled, thirteen years old and crying as much as he had the day they'd met when he was eight.

"We agreed to meet up when you came into town; you weren't meant to run away from them, remember? We need them to like me if they're going to trust me at all, un. They aren't going to trust me if you keep doing this" He chided.

"But they aren't planning on taking me into town any more - they're keeping me prisoner!"

"There are worse places to be than Suna" He ran his hands through Sasori's red hair.

"I want to stay with you"

"You can't. It's illegal. You like humanity, remember?" Deidara said calmly. "Now how do I call your grandmother, un?" It wasn't as if phones worked across the realms.

"I don't want you to leave me"

"Sasori, tell me how to-"

"She'll keep you away"

"Calm down," Deidara ran his cool hands over Sasori's face and neck, hoping it'd ease some of the heat he was emitting but not chill him to the point of turning. "This isn't healthy, Sasori, un. You're too young, you need to mix with other beings - get used to things. I can't be all you know, yeah"

"She wasn't going to let me spend any time with you" He scowled, his tears disappeared and his eyes were once again defiant. "At all. Ever. Probably _for_ever - I wouldn't be surprised if she could-"

"You can't lie to your grandmother, un. You need to do whatever it is you do, and go back to your cousins in Suna. Now"

They both stilled when a dark feeling invaded the room. Sasori groaned knowingly and Deidara's fangs grew to attack, his nails sharpening, his eyes blackening by the second.

When Gaara stepped out of the portal, all of seven years old and containing one of the supernatural world's most uncontrollable demons, Sasori gripped the vampire. They'd never met before, but Sasori had explained Gaara's situation to him multiple times and was sure the blonde would understand. Gaara might be a child but he was severely protective of his remaining family members; his parents had been killed by a rogue bunch of vampires and he'd loathed them with intensity ever since. But holding onto his hand was Chiyo and she looked just as angry.

"Please don't kill my cousin" He whispered frantically to Deidara, then raising his voice to say, "Gaara, please don't kill my vampire!"

"It's not him you need to worry about" Chiyo held her free hand out, refusing to look at Deidara.

"He didn't know" Sasori tried to defend the blonde. "I came on my own, by myself. I told him you knew where I was"

"Then you're a fool for thinking you'd get away with it" She sighed at him and he felt immediately guilty. "Come with me now, Sasori" He hesitated and her eyes narrowed. With a light nudge from Deidara and and an encouraging nod, he eventually shuffled over to her side of the room. He noticed the glare that Gaara had pinned on Deidara and knew they'd forever be at eachothers throats.

"Try to steal him again, vampire" He threatened, and Deidara hissed in response. "And i'll have you buried before your fang touches him"

When Sasori returned to his cousins house in Suna, Temari was crying, Kankuro had his fist in the wall and the place was a wreck. He was yelled at by Kankuro for 'escaping', Temari refused to feed him if he wasn't going to 'cooperate' and Gaara had already started on the plans for Deidara's execution. He'd gone to bed convinced that the world hated him and his grandmother would never let him see the vampire again.

**End of flashback.**

**OOO**

After that, Chiyo accepted that Sasori had been influenced - whether for the better or not - by the vampire and had agreed that _some _contact must be maintained for everyone's sanity. For one weekend every month, Sasori would be allowed to stay in Chiyo's apartment as a mature fourteen year old and wander the common markets in the central part of the Arc-Terri on his own. He met new people, found a new circle of friends that his fourteen year old self could like and learn from and stayed up late with Deidara after his hunts.

Although he missed some of the simple aspects of the Human Realm, and humanity in general, he found himself a new family in them all - an extended family, of sorts - and although they weren't very keen on vampires, they made allowances and exceptions and he was attached to them just as he was his real family. He'd moved in with them as soon as he was sixteen and his education in the human-realm had been enough; Kisame had been the first to help him move his things into his room and he hadn't looked back since.

**End of Interlude**

OOO

Chiyo had always been there, for better or for worse and always for his own good. Now would be no different.

During his fever, he caught drifts of the same cinnamon smell she used to have around the house when she visited, and the odd touch of burnt wood.

"Do you know how to cure a sick vampire?" He remembered asking her, half feverish and his body feeling like lead. It sounded like the stupid line to an even stupider joke.

"I have a few ideas" She'd told him as she changed his bandages for the third time and then took his temperature.

"Don't let him die" He'd pleaded.

"I'm a touch more bothered about you at the moment, dear"

"Don't let him die" He'd repeated, because all he had in his head was the clear memory of them all hating his vampire.

"I'll do what I can"

OOO

That was also the day that Kakuzu came back through the portal with Hidan and Deidara. Hidan was yelling and swearing, apparently finding it funny. Kakuzu was focussed on getting Deidara to the lab, which he eventually achieved with Zetsu's help.

Sasori heard it all from his bedroom, but heard not a sound from Deidara. Chiyo was back again, fixing his dressings and monitoring his fever - which had gone down rapidly now the infection had been caught and tended to. He was healing, but not fast enough to warrant any permission to see his boyfriend. Chiyo herself had told him, _'Not until you're strong enough to eat my soup'. _Which he wasn't just yet.

Zetsu and Kakuzu were working together, having secured Deidara in their lab and assured the household that he wasn't a threat. That led to the nobody-in-or-out-of-the-basement situation and Sasori resigned to the fact that he wasn't getting anywhere near his boyfriend anytime soon and Konan stayed as far away from the vampire as possible; Sasori couldn't be angry at her when she was the one who had the final stay on allowing the vampire into her home, and she hadn't left Sasori's side for longer than half an hour for the entire time he'd been bed-bound. There was also the fact that it was really hard to hate her or be angry at her for longer than a few seconds.

Kisame came back furious. He was already pissed off because he'd had to save his '_damsel_' (Hidan had said so) from a death that he apparently welcomed - and then the '_damsel_' revealed his complete and utter servitude to a _'fucking asshole' _\- which hadn't helped at all. On top of that, he'd come back to get an update on the progress at Home and instead found Kakuzu and Zetsu in the lab with _'the fucking vampire'. _Kisame was usually calm, rarely swore needlessly and Sasori hated seeing the blue demon wound up.

"How's the infection?" He'd asked, storming into Sasori's bedroom with fury. "Horrible? Good!" Though it was clear he didn't mean it.

Upon seeing Konan wrapped in a blanket on the chair next to Sasori's bed, the blue demon calmed and then noticed Chiyo at the other end of the room.

"Sorry, ladies" He checked himself and took a few breaths. "But there's a vampire in our Home; do you _want _Gaara to kill him?"

"Gaara doesn't live here" Chiyo reminded them. "I've told him it's better if he stays away for now. And even if he did come back, he can't do anything in your home, or to that poor soul down in the lab. It's taken care of"

"Poor soul?" Kisame echoed.

"Hm" Chiyo nodded, indicated a finger and walked back out with Kisame confusedly following. Sasori didn't need good eyesight to see the concern on his face and the dread on Chiyo's. Deidara wasn't doing any better, and Sasori was beginning to think the worst.

"Let me see him" He asked Konan softly. She silently shook her head, her eyes on the maps bent over her legs. He supposed it was for the best; it wasn't as if he'd make much of a difference.

The next night, Kisame had gone back to the House in the south of France with his next Project (the one Hidan had dubbed '_damsel'). _Chiyo had done all she could for the night and it was up to Sasori to rest. She'd already told Gaara to stay away because he'd only hinder Sasori's recovery time and there was nothing the boy could do to help. Kakuzu had left with Hidan to locate some of the missing creatures that Konan had managed to find. They'd be gone a while. Konan was nowhere to be found - her chair empty, her vigil abandoned, and as far as Sasori could tell, Zetsu was his only obstacle.

He grabbed a hoodie and tugged it carefully over his shoulders and over his bandaged abdomen. He wrapped a blanket around his upper half and shoved some socks on. He didn't care that his pyjama bottoms were too long, or that his socks were a mis-matched combo of green and orange. He shuffled as carefully as he could down to the lab.

His stomach flopped when he heard Zetsu talking to himself.

"You don't know for sure"

_"But it's possible. You won't come?" _-That wasn't Zetsu's othe voice. Sasori frowned and listened closer.

"We can't leave him"

_"He's sedated"_

"For now"

_"Zet, it won't take ten minutes. Come with me" _

Zetsu had friends? It was the only excuse Sasori could think of that would allow the person to get away with calling him Zet - even they never addressed him as such.

"Ten minutes, and then we're coming back" Zetsu sighed. Sasori counted to ten, presuming that Zetsu would use his ring to get out of their Home and to wherever it was his friend was leading him. _Hopefully not into trouble, _he thought quickly, before opening the door and wandering into the lab.


	9. Chapter 9

"You shouldn't be here, un"

Deidara _wasn't _sedated. Sasori stopped his footsteps and scrunched his hands. He sounded…slow. Sasori inched forwards.

"Don't un" He heard shuffling, the metal of chains clinking together. As he rounded the counter that held most of Kakuzu's odd things, he found Deidara lying on the marble slab that was a spare countertop, or operations table. He was bound by chains, his wrist and ankles looped, chained and bolted to the solid counter itself, though there was a little slack.

He had no shirt on, his hair a loose mess around his arms and the marble top. His eyescope was lying on Kakuzu's other table and Sasori was struck with a sudden bout of alarm. Deidara hadn't got the thing fixed since the attack. His hair had kept it hidden and Sasori couldn't quite recall ever seeing it or not seeing it attached. Hadn't Deidara been wracked with headaches?

He reached for it and ran his fingers over it, the familiarity soothing his nerves. It was an old one.

"Don't want you here" Deidara breathed, his brows furrowed with pain as he turned his head gingerly away. "Don't want to _be _here" His body shuddered and the chains rattled as his body went taut and rigid, a groan escaping his throat.

"I want you here" Sasori said softly. "Doesn't that count?"

"No"

Sasori rounded the counter with the scope on it and approached the one that Deidara was tied to. Another groan sounded and Sasori found the taps and a cloth. The running water made Deidara at least look in his direction, but as soon as Sasori moved back towards the blonde - he looked away. He reached the cloth closer to Deidara and the vampire hissed a warning. Sasori snapped his hand back and tried to calm his heart.

"I'm trying to help, brat"

Deidara didn't calm, instead straining against the chains (though they held fast) and mumbling under his breath. Sasori sucked up his courage and firmly planted the cloth on Deidara's forehead, at which the vampire stilled completely.

"You're playing nurse, un" He said softly.

"I'm the only one who will" Sasori reasoned, now dabbing the cloth over Deidara's forehead. "I can't imagine Kakuzu as hospitable" He tried to keep his voice neutral, but it was undeniably unsteady.

"Un" Deidara sighed, and Sasori was glad when he leaned into the touch just a little. When Sasori pulled the cloth back with the idea of washing Deidara's dirtied torso, the blonde's eyes pinned him.

"Are you done?" He asked, his voice quiet. "Will you go, now?"

So he'd been playing along for his own amusement? Sasori grit his teeth.

"Why do you have to be so stubborn!" He punctuated his anger by tossing the cloth across the room. "I'm trying to help you"

"I don't have a bug, stupid" Deidara hissed, his eyes darkening with threat. "I've not got the flu" He caught his breath; breathing was quickly becoming difficult and Sasori didn't know what to do. He wasn't aware that Deidara _breathed _to begin with - he just…was.

"How have we been together this long and I've not noticed anything?" Sasori murmured quietly to himself. They'd met when he was eight - he was now twenty years old and he'd never once noticed or paid attention to whether or not his boyfriend had made any kind of breathing movements. "You breathe?"

Deidara began to choke, blood pooling at the corner of his lip before it ran out completely as he turned his head. He started seizing, his body tensing and clenching at intervals, straining so hard that the chains left marks. His eyes rolled back and Sasori stood, transfixed in shock. For the first time in a very long while, he wanted to cry.

The shuddering stopped and Deidara went slack, his body glistening with sweat while his nose, ears and mouth had track lines of blood.

Deidara was either asleep or unconscious, but both were unsettling in Sasori's stomach. It was night outside, Deidara should be awake. It felt wrong, so _so _wrong.

He turned to leave; Zetsu said ten minutes - he was usually prompt. But he couldn't seem to make his feet inch towards the door. Is this was his relationship would be like, again? Sneaking secret meetings behind his family's back?

_Not again, _he fisted his hands and looked at the vampire's motionless body. It had never looked like a corpse before, but Sasori felt a chill that it now came close.

Zetsu wasn't back and if he had somehow managed to hide in the shadows, he wasn't interrupting Sasori's actions. Either way, he was thankful.

Sasori found a blanket and draped it over Deidara next, taking his nurse duties a step further as he went to see if Kakuzu or Zetsu had any blood in the fridge. Perhaps that'd help when the blonde woke up.

When he saw that there was none, he wondered. Maybe his strange brothers really did intend on killing his boyfriend.

_Not so long as I'm alive, _Sasori vowed.

He tested the Threat Theory, brandishing one of Zetsu's plant-cutters and waving it about near Deidara. When the blonde didn't stir, Sasori acted.

He walked back over and pressed their lips together - his lips feeling aflame compared to the coldness of Deidara's. It was entirely surreal how cold they were, when his body was as warm - if not warmer - than a humans.

"I miss you," He murmured, quickly taking another kiss while the vampire was still unconscious.

Deidara's hand clasped around Sasori's wrist like a vice, the minimal amount of slack just enough for him to accomplish it. Kakuzu would never have gotten so close for it to be an issue, but Sasori…. It had just been enough.

The rest of his body reeled away and Deidara couldn't do anything but clamp onto the red head's wrist. It began to feel numb, and then tingly, and Sasori was sure that one sudden _wrong _movement would dislocate it altogether.

"You're hurting" Sasori sucked in a breath as the grip tightened, Deidara's eyes closed despite his rigid body. Was he asleep? No. Sasori recognised this; Deidara's body had finally recognised a 'threat'. "Dei, _please. _Wake up_" _He daren't move his wrist for fear of it snapping, but with a violent twist from Deidara and his bone popped awkwardly.

His vision filled with white-hot pain and then faded into a black blur. The long nails started to emerge, growing slowly and not as rapidly as they once had. Sasori bit back a shout as they pierced the skin where Deidara held his grip. He watched his wrist, hoping Deidara would let go or even loosen his grasp.

When he didn't do either, Sasori's eyes turned defiant. Deidara had already broken his wrist, but he'd probably work on the fingers too if he could. It was all for the sake of terror and Sasori refused to let him.

When Deidara finally opened his eyes, the chains straining as he tried to get up, Sasori's wrist was slowly released and he felt it pulse with pain. There was no reasonable way to explain its damage - nobody would believe he'd trapped it in a door, or fallen on it awkwardly. He might've punched a window, but it wasn't likely.

"Get the hell out, 'Sori" Deidara murmured, his body writhing, his slender back arching in a way that might've even been sexy if the blonde wasn't slowly dying. "Before I split your veins, un" The sweaty sheen was back, coating his fair skin.

Deidara's head lolled as he started bleeding again; exit points, nose, eyes, mouth and ears. It was horrible for all of a full minute (he'd counted), a violent rush of seizures and blood until he calmed, his eyes rolling back, his body going slack once more.

Sasori's head hurt. His heart throbbed more than any of his wounds could and he couldn't fight the urge to cry anymore. He braced himself against the counter, convinced himself that he was completely alone and slammed his eyes shut. He counted to ten and sighed, letting his feelings overtake him.

OOO

"You're not supposed to be here" A voice said, a blanket dropping down on top of him. _Zetsu. _

"I'm sorry" Sasori apologised, tugging the blanket around himself but making no move to leave. He'd sat on the floor when his knees hadn't the energy to keep him up, facing the counter that had Deidara's lifeless body on it. "I had to see…"

"We understand; we were gone longer than planned - it's our mistake" Zetsu knelt down, holding out a cup of hot herbal tea. Although Sasori didn't like it, he didn't hate it - and a friendly gesture from his brother wasn't something to be ignored. He took it with his good hand, hid his bad one, and sipped.

"It's not very good" Zetsu said, and Sasori frowned at the tea.

"It tastes alright to me"

"Not the tea" Zetsu's eyes drifted over to the blonde, the blood now dried and crusted in various places. Sasori didn't have the energy to clean it up anymore. "We've never seen anything like it"

"Why?" Sasori asked, before he was even sure that he wanted to know. "What's wrong with him?"

"Kakuzu said not to tell you. The others agree that we're not meant to upset you"

"If my boyfriend _dies _I will be more than upset, Zetsu. Just tell me"

"Where to start?" He said softly, in that tone that indicated the question was rhetorical. The only issue with that was that Zetsu didn't ask rhetorical questions, and usually his 'other half' answered - either out loud, or in his mind. "It would be easier, wouldn't it?" Zetsu nodded and Sasori waited. When his brother got up, Sasori shuffled to a stand and followed when he moved to Kakuzu's counter. He fiddled with some of the equipment - most of which Sasori hadn't seen since his human-high-school years.

"This is a sample of your blood" Zetsu explained. Sasori looked through the scope, but he didn't know what he was really looking for. It was a blotchy mass of various pink and red shades with a few blobs of colour. "My blood" The slide changed, and Sasori found a slight similarity. A light tinge of silver that was in both his own and Zetsu's - it looked metallic. "And Kakuzu's" The slide switched and the silver circle was still present. "And the vampire's"

Sasori stared at the sample for a good few seconds and then pulled back.

"It's completely different" He murmured.

"No matter the supernatural being, we all have a common element"

"The silver blob?"

"It's the Supernatural Gene, so to speak. It's good that the vampire still has it"

"But that black stuff? His blood is black?"

"We think its turning" Zetsu said softly. "It's red when we draw it, red when we analyse it - an hour later and we find it black. It's the transformation that's interesting" Sasori winced. "We thought it was when it met oxygen, but it's not that. We tested, and we think it's decaying"

"Decaying?" Sasori echoed grimly.

"The vampire's supernatural ability allows for his healing process to continue. His body is trying to fix itself, which is good. But the contamination is decaying his blood supply. Now, vampires only have one blood system that feeds the others; did you know?" Sasori shook his head; he didn't know anything about vampire anatomy - Deidara didn't ever seem to have the interest to teach him.

"When blood is ingested, it goes through the main blood system and filters out into others; the immune system, for healing. The nervous ststem, for sharper senses and such. As long as the blood system is functioning, everything else should work. Your vampire's blood supply is decaying somewhere in his main blood system; most of it is rotting"

"Rotting?" He didn't like the mental image of that at all.

"The little blood that is getting through is working to restore health; his body is trying to heal. It's…exhausting. A vicious daily cycle. It's not good. He will use the blood to heal, the virus will cause it to decay. Again, he will try to heal, and again it will decay"

"Won't he build up some sort of immunity? Like humans do?"

"If he was going to, he would have"

After a few moments, Sasori voiced his most worrying thought.

"Eventually he's going to run out of blood to keep healing himself, isn't he?"

"Likely" Zetsu nodded. "The vampire can't drink" Zetsu added thoughtfully. "He's getting no fresh blood to replenish the old or refresh the decaying supply - so he shouldn't have the nutrition he needs for the healing process to continue - but it is. The virus gets used to circulating the blood system so the attacks happen quicker, as you know. New blood would slow it down, but every time he drinks, his body rejects it"

"He throws it back up" Sasori remembered the retching sound and then shook his head to forget it again.

"With the blood that he does have slowly decaying…eventually there will be nothing left to decay, Sasori" Zetsu said softly and Sasori glanced back at the unconscious blonde. "We aren't sure why he's still alive" He added factually. "Nor why his condition hasn't already proved fatal"

"He's running out of blood" Sasori paled, his body feeling boneless.

When another lull came, Zetsu moved around and gathered a few things, putting them in front of Sasori. He put something on a cloth that had a mint-like scent and then put the cloth to Sasori's lip. He flinched. While preoccupied staring at his half-dead boyfriend, Zetsu cleaned and wrapped his wrist, numbing the hand completely before he snapped the bone back into place. Sasori barely felt a thing.

"You're getting good at sourcing the numbness" He noted softly.

"We can see the advantages" Zetsu nodded. Sasori's eyes flicked to Deidara's eye scope on the counter top - either an old one or a new one, because Deidara hadn't ever gotten it replaced since it had been taken during his attack. Zetsu must've caught him staring. "He can't wear it - we've tried"

"Why?" Sasori murmured.

"The headaches distract him"

The next time the conversation fell quiet, Zetsu took away Sasori's barely-drunk cup of herbal tea and walked to the door with it. Sasori could take a hint, but he really didn't want to leave.

"Konan will be back soon" Zetsu said, his voice sure.

"Where did she vanish to?" Sasori asked, opening the door to leave the lab and then turning to take the cup back.

"We don't know" Zetsu said, too happily. _A lie. _He'd let it slide, if only because he'd let Sasori stay.

"Will you tell her I was here?"

"…If it becomes a habit, yes. If your life becomes endangered, yes. If it becomes important, yes"

"Great, thanks" He muttered, taking the cup and shuffling the blanket further around his body - he now had two. "Any instance where you won't?"

"If the vampire dies before anything significant happens, then we have no reason to tell the others"

Sasori sighed, but it was typical of his brother.

"About your wrist, we'll break something for you as a cover"

"That's….nice of you"

"And we'll try not to kill the vampire, if we can help it"

Sasori thanked his brother and left, heading back to his room with a gut wrenching feeling. Their hopes for Deidara pulling through were slim; everyone was sure he'd die.

OOO

Sasori still wasn't strong enough to eat Chiyo's soup. It had everything nutritious in it and though Chiyo vowed it would speed up his recovery, he couldn't yet build up enough appetite to eat it. She brought it every day and he'd try and sip at it, but he didn't feel like forcing it down his throat - even if it would allow him to see Deidara.

"You know you're not better yet" Was her conclusion, drawing away the soup container and setting it on the side table. "It'll seem all the more appealing once you get your appetite back"

As it was, he'd been living off water for the past few days and hadn't felt too down because of it. Hidan had made him some toast because Kakuzu had kicked him out of the lab, but he could only nibble at it and it was cold before he could manage even a half slice.

He didn't want to annoy Zetsu so he stayed away from the lab, even when a few opportunities presented themselves. He was thankful when he got updates, but he could tell they were sugar coated and lightly-put.

"He's not in pain" Kakuzu had said, which was a nice thought, but Sasori quickly assumed that if Deidara wasn't in any pain, he was either spending more time unconscious or too near-dead to feel it.

"We've located the source of decay in his blood" Zetsu had said, and Sasori hadn't bothered to hide his hope. "We're working on isolating it" But that didn't mean a cure was in sight, only that they'd found what it was they needed to fix.

When Sasori managed to eat Chiyo's soup and a full slice of toast, he did feel much better. His wounds had healed, traces of his fever had vanished and his body felt almost full strength.

He'd showered and changed into something half decent when Hidan had tugged him into the dining room.

His family were sat around the table, Konan at the top next to Kisame, with Kakuzu and Hidan opposite eachother, Zetsu sat next to Kakuzu with Chiyo opposite Konan on the other side. Sasori took the empty seat next to Hidan silently, his heart thudding against his chest.

_Please don't be dead. _He chanted to himself. _Don't be dead._

"We can't fix it" Zetsu said bluntly. _There has to be something, _Sasori thought irritably. "It's nothing we've ever encountered before, it's bordering the very foundations of bio-molecular mutations"

"That doesn't mean anything to the rest of us, Zetsu" Kisame added, his hands knotted together on the table.

"It's new science. It's something we don't have the capabilities to counter. We can't reverse the effects, or stop them. It just keeps destroying"

"Then what _can _you do?" Sasori tried to keep the anger from his voice. When Zetsu didn't answer straight away, he was torn between thinking that his brother might have another plan, or that he simply didn't want to say what they were all clearly thinking, which was _'nothing'. _"You're supposed to be good at this" He didn't mean for it to sound accusatory. "What good are you if you can't fix it?"

"Hey," Kisame scolded, his fist flattening on the table. Sasori mumbled an apology because he knew one was needed, but it wasn't _helping. _Nothing was helping and Deidara was clearly dying.

"We're not saying it's impossible" Chiyo said softly, with a quick glance to Kakuzu. "Just that we don't have the knowledge to counter it" Sasori's hope plummeted; If Chiyo was saying that _she _didn't have the knowledge - someone who was used to working with new, advancing and ground-breaking sciences in both the supernatural and the human world…

"Meaning?" Kisame prompted, keeping an eye on Sasori's growing look of hope.

"Meaning that somebody else might" Chiyo answered. "The science is new, experimental and extremely responsive. It came from somewhere, and someone will know"

"Responsive?" Sasori echoed.

"It changes on its own, depending on certain factors" Kakuzu said factually. "If we tamper with the original settings, so to speak, the symptoms change rapidly and the virus doubles. It doesn't just go away" Sasori felt his body chill.

"Did you tamper?" He asked, but again it might've sounded accusatory.

"We tried to fix it" Zetsu explained. "We didn't know it'd do this"

Sasori groaned and pulled his knees up.

"You're killing him" He murmured, convinced.

"They didn't know, Sasori" Kisame's voice was calm and reasonable. "You said somebody else might be able to fix it?" He asked, looking between Zetsu and Kakuzu.

"Hm" Kakuzu nodded. "We located all of our Bounty's, deceased with traces of chemical interference in their biology - someone is doing it on purpose. And if someone is doing it, someone understands it. What's worrying us is why. It's either for experimental purposes or as a way of slowing possible targets. A hunting technique, maybe? It's possible that the attack on the vampire was targeted to begin with" Sasori nodded slowly at that, thinking back.

"But if you're going to experiment on something, you do it to the things nobody will miss. Something worthless" Sasori frowned. "Deidara isn't wothless. He's _old" _

"We know this" Zetsu murmured softly to himself. "We know this, hmm….." The table waited, Zetsu mumbling to himself until - "The UCF"

"The Uchiha Corps Facility" Kisame frowned. "I've been there - my mission" He clarified.

"The Uchiha's" Hidan scoffed. "Uptight bastards; just because they're genetically superior to humans they assume they're worth a shit"

"They _are _worth a shit" Kakuzu argued. "They don't have supernatural abilities yet they can still rival us"

"They're the superior clan, right?" Sasori remembered. "They've always been genetically better than humans, made a lot of defence structures, but that's it. They're just glorified humans that are faster, better, stronger, smarter-"

"Crazier" Zetsu said, at the same time Kisame uttered "Shit"

"They have nothing natural to defend themselves with in an attack - not like Kisame or the vampire" Kakuzu explained. "In that respect, they are still very human. They rely on weapons, guns and tranquiliser darts and it would seem fitting for them to advance to chemicals" Zetsu had started muttering quietly to himself, not drawing too much attention.

"Why him?" Sasori frowned. "Why Dei?"

"Might've been random" Kisame offered. "The facility is known for helping and aiding security - their whole image is sold on that. Maybe the vampire was just in the wrong place"

"He was on his way home-"

"Out" Zetsu said loudly. "Of the facility. Out of …the facility. The experiments"

"If they were doing something like that, I doubt they'd risk it getting out into public knowledge" Kisame argued.

"Mmmm….a branch, then" Zetsu nodded. "Not the main facility. Not the main people"

Sasori's head flopped onto his knees.

So they'd run out of ideas to help Deidara. The one place that might've been able to help was actually running chemical tests to _hurt _instead of _help _and might make things worse, and was seeming -by the minute- to be the ones responsible for Deidara's illness. In all likelihood, he wasn't mean to survive for this long. The feeling of dread grew; Deidara was surely running out of options.

"Just kill him" Gaara offered his opinion with a shrug and Sasori had never wanted to stab someone's face so much. He was stood at the end of the table, away from the others and had clearly just arrived. He pulled out the chair and sat on it. "How do you know the UCF isn't still collecting data somehow? You're helping them by keeping him alive - I'm positive he's supposed to be dead by now"

"He's right on that account" Kakuzu added, and Sasori shot him a glare. "He's supposed to be dead - we don't know what's keeping him alive. He's not drinking…" Sasori tuned out - he'd heard it all from Zetsu before.

In the meantime, an argument had broken out. Gaara was opting for death, Kakuzu wanted to run more tests and Zetsu was adamant that nothing good would come from it. Kisame was sure there had to be another way.

"Enough" Konan said, her motherly voice as soft as silk. All the tension dissipated as they fell into an obedient silence. "We need to find out more about the experiments this facility is running before we do anything else, that will be our next step. If the patient is stable for now then it'd be best to keep him that way, right, Chiyo?" The woman nodded her agreement.

"And the patient isn't in any immediate threat of death, that either of you can predict?" She asked, turning to Kakuzu and Zetsu. When they nodded cautiously, she looked to the table in thought. "So we leave him be. Sasori, there's nothing we can or can't do for him at the moment. Is this okay with you?" Sasori supposed that no interference was a lesser chance of death, so he agreed. Besides, if they left him alone, it might mean he could sneak in again.

"So we need information on the facility" She decided.

"I gained intel on it while I was there - I might be able to…" Kisame glanced to Kakuzu. "I'll see what I can find out. I can go back I have I have to"

"We just got you out of there" Kakuzu frowned. "Easy as it was, they won't fall for it twice. Surely Zetsu-"

"I can find out more about the experiments, I can get back inside the facility; there's another building. Kennex. I wasn't taken there but…I might be able to get in. It was the only building I hadn't found a purpose for - it might be related to the chemical tests"

"And that Damsel? Still got him chained up? What'll you do when-" Hidan frowned dubiously.

"I can work around the Uchiha brothers; They care for eachother, I can use it"

"The younger brother is willing to help with access" Gaara said. Kisame watched him for a moment before nodding slowly in agreement.

"You have more than one motive for going back there" Kakuzu's eyes narrowed at Kisame. "The eldest one" He murmured.

"Damsel" Hidan smirked.

"He's not a problem"

"Kisame," Konan looked worried.

"Not a problem" He said again, surely. "I'll see what I can find" Kisame promised, disappearing seconds later.

Kakuzu and Hidan left soon after to 'hunt', not seeming to care much that Deidara might be an issue. Zetsu was sure he could gather more information elsewhere and took to the shadows in minutes. Gaara had nothing kind to say to Sasori or about Deidara and they both knew it'd only make things worse - the younger cousin left silently. Chiyo came over to him while Konan disappeared into the kitchen.

"I don't want a world where he's not here" He uttered, ignoring how pathetic he sounded. Deidara had introduced him to everything he could remember about the supernatural _everything. _His grandmother had tried her best to teach Sasori and keep his optimism about it, but Deidara had been the catalyst for any hope of change. He'd done what his grandmother couldn't quite do. He'd made it seem like a world of wonders instead of an inhuman, scary place where monsters lived. If Deidara wasn't there… "If he dies, I'm leaving" He'd see how he could cope back in the human world, ignoring the supernatural realms completely. That was plan A.

"I thought you…." The old woman smiled a little. "I'd hoped your confidence would outweigh your emotions" Sasori frowned; that hadn't been the response he'd been expecting. His grandma always had wise words to offer, but had always been supportive of Sasori's decisions once he understood that he was responsible for the repercussions.

"It'd be just like before. I'd live there, pretend everything's normal and you'd visit when you're free"

"Do you really think you could? You have a family here, Sasori"

He didn't want to argue with her, but she was missing the point. He knew he wouldn't be able to look at the world the same way if Deidara died. _I don't want to think about it. _

Konan came back with a tray of home-made cookies and a pot of tea. Sasori took the opportunity to excuse himself and drag his weighted body back into his bedroom. He didn't think he could look at Deidara right now and not see him as a corpse.


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: Thanks again for the reviews and fav's! I'm terrible at responding to them but I really do appreciate the motivation .**

**OOO**

Everyone was gone and he took his chance.

Sasori had his bags packed, one with clothes in for him and Deidara, and the other full of his medicine cabinet's contents.

He tugged on his jacket and then his coat, swapping the bag between hands as he shoved it on and moved towards the lab at the same time.

Deidara was still, his eyes half-open with dried blood trails from his nose and mouth and ears. His wrists were damaged where he'd strained against the chains, and his body was so, so thin…

Just as he reached for the table, Zetsu flashed in from the shadows.

"Don't fight me on this" Sasori said quietly, taking the spare chains from the cupboard without bothering to look at his brother. "Please, Zetsu?" The man disappeared back into the shadows and Sasori could only hope he'd not told his siblings.

"What're you going to do?" Deidara asked, his voice a whisper. "Play nurse?

"We're playing truant" Sasori clarified, taking advantage of the sluggishness of his boyfriend and undoing the chains at his ankles. He quickly tied them together again, closer this time, but free of the marble table.

"Bad idea" Deidara murmured. Sasori did the same with his hands, placing them over his chest before securing them again.

"I don't care" He quickly kissed Deidara's lips, pulling back before a fang could get caught, and was upset when Deidara didn't react. He helped the blonde upright, his body now colder than ice, despite the humanly pink look to his skin. Patches of his skin began to show the beginnings of web-like black veins. Hadn't Kakuzu said he saw those on the dead bodies of his Bounty's? Sasori swallowed.

"You can't….do anything" Deidara was feather-light as Sasori lifted him from the slab.

"Just stay with me" Sasori held him closer. "Don't die"

Deidara was silent, barely able to walk with his chained ankles and his unstable balance. Sasori fisted his ring to the wall, making sure his bag was secure.

He took them to a new safehouse, one that had been built and decorated in the past year. It was to be their shared home when Sasori turned twenty one and his family couldn't stop him from moving in with the vampire. It was funny how they liked human things when it suited them.

It was still in the Arcane Territories, the same realm as their Home and one of the most peaceful of all the different places, but if luck was on his side - perhaps his brothers would start by assuming he'd go back to the human world first.

The house was compact, designed and decorated how they'd both wanted it to be. The bedroom was spacious but warm and inviting - that was there where Sasori put Deidara down on the bed. It was dark outside, but he drew the curtains more so he could forget about the sun going up and down and reminding him of the passing time.

"I remember this" Deidara's eyes opened a fraction, taking in the room's contents. Sasori sat on the bed next to him, taking a hand in his. Deidara tried to remove it. "I don't know how long…I'll be this good. Zetsu gave me something before but…nothing's-"

"I've decided I don't care" He replied, tightening his grip. "If you die, I'm going back to the human world and forsaking this shit-hole" Deidara frowned in disapproval and Sasori quickly explained. "I don't want to stay here if you're gone. It's simple" Deidara shook his head, his hair messing up. Sasori reached for it and marvelled at its colour. It was duller now, lifeless. "So don't die" Sasori reasoned, and Deidara let a sigh escape his chest.

"I don't want to hurt you again, 'n" He grimaced, his hands tightening underneath Sasori's. "You shouldn't have-" Sasori dared another kiss. He sensed no threat from his boyfriend and as long as he was content in that, he wouldn't ignore his desires. He placed another one for good measure.

"This is…bad idea" Deidara whispered, seeming to try a laugh. "So, so bad"

"I know - they'll not be happy" Sasori took his chances, leaning down and lying next to Deidara. He had his right hand still over Deidara's two - loosely lying on his stomach and cuffed together. "But I am. With you. Here"

"Un" Deidara sounded.

"No killing instinct yet?" Sasori asked after a moment, when he realised that he'd spent the past silent minute waiting for Deidara to 'switch' on him.

"No" Deidara said quietly.

"Pain?" Sasori asked tentatively.

"Un" But Deidara smiled. "Can't help…don't feed"

"I know, I got that memo" Sasori nudged himself closer. Deidara still had his Deidara-smell.

"Didn't want you to ….see like this"

"Shut up" Sasori said, perhaps a bit too violently. "You think I care that you're all sweaty and sick? That you're as weak and defenceless as a newborn?" He touched his head to Deidara's arm and said, "There's so much more to care about, brat" After another spell of silence, which Sasori was enjoying because it seemed like Deidara had lost his argumentative streak, he found a dull thought.

"I can't hide this place from them" Sasori's thoughts had taken him there as he began to consider his family's plan of action. "When one of them starts to look, they'll find us here eventually. But it'll be okay - we'll move again"

"No"

"We can, it'll be fine. This place has your old car, remember? It'll just be another roadtrip"

"Sasori"

"I won't let them kill you"

"They….aren't" Sasori closed his eyes at that. Sometimes he wondered… "They're trying…so hard" Deidara's voice was slowing. "They don't even like….me. For you. All for you"

"Dei…."

"Don't run ... Keep …here. I like…here"

"If you die, I'll burn it for you"

When Deidara didn't reply, Sasori sat up to see why. Was the blonde asleep…or…

He had to check, hand to chest, and felt a faint rise and fall. He was sure now that before the infection, Deidara's chest had never done that.

"Wake up, okay?" He whispered, placing another few kisses for good luck.

OOO

Sasori slept fitfully, waking at intervals and finding Deidara's condition different each time. He'd be cold, then hot, then bleeding or awake or asleep. He'd not made a single violent pass at Sasori, but then he'd not done much of anything other than lie on the bed.

Sasori got up, saw the vague outline of light outside and hated how his body clock had gone back to normal. He blamed the infection - all that sleeping had clearly knocked his wake-up-in-the-morning habit back into play. This was going to set his plan back - it wasn't safe for the blonde to travel during daylight hours.

He kissed Deidara's cheek and went to get washed and changed. When he was done, Deidara had shuffled into an upright position and had managed to flop his legs over the side of the bed. Sasori rushed to his side, concerned.

"What can I do?" He said quietly, his brows dipping as Deidara swiped his nosebleed away - his hands still bound. Sasori immediately felt guilty and reached for them.

"I actually feel much better, un" Deidara frowned, clearly confused. "Whatever Zetsu gave me might have acutally worked" Hope flared in Sasori's veins and he immediately uncuffed his boyfriend.

"Your fingers are cold" Deidara noted, and then glanced about. "Is the heating on?"

"…It can wait…" Sasori glanced to the windows, the sunlight bordering the curtains. His stomach sank; Deidara was awake during daylight.

"You know what I miss, un?" Deidara murmured, leaning in and brushing his nose by Sasori's ear. "You" It didn't take much - Sasori was deprived of everything that was his boyfriend and clearly, the blonde felt the same way. He stepped back, away from the bed and measured him up. He did look a bit better, more…refreshed. _It must've worked, _he convinced himself. Half torn between taking him back and keeping him where he was, Sasori's fingers fiddled hesitantly with the belt loops on his jeans. Did he take what he had while it was good? Or…

He thumbed his belt loops and tugged his jeans down, swishing his hips all the way. He watched Deidara stiffened body reacting to it, a sense of achievement settling in his gut. Yes, he'd take what he had while he had it. Deidara was permanently shirtless now anyway it seemed, and blood-free apart from the small streak left by his nose. Deidara leant a hand out, tugging Sasori forwards by his underpants. All it took was a smirk and Sasori abandoned any foreplay ideas. He pounced, hands and fingers in the blonde's array of hair - legs around his bare waist - their bodies crushed together.

OOO

When Sasori woke up and Deidara wasn't there, he panicked. He searched the upper floor, calling out his name - and by the fifth shout he realised that Deidara wasn't in the house at all. He couldn't sense him, couldn't pick up on anything but a trail leading right out the front door. And what was worse, night had come. Deidara could be _anywhere. _

"Hunting, he'll be hunting," Sasori repeated it to himself over and over, the only reason for his calm breaths was that it meant he could inhale Deidara's lingering scent that much longer. He'd convinced himself that Deidara would be hunting right until the trail left the next-door forest and continued out into the nearest town. Sasori dreaded to think why or what for.

"Shit" He groaned. He'd automatically assumed the worst because at least then he was prepared for a bad situation. If Deidara was fine, though his gut told him otherwise, then at least the only thing to come of it would be an argument. He really should have left a note, and to leave without being fully certain of his health?

"I'm going to fucking kill him - and then they're all going to murder me" Sasori decided, gritting his teeth as he marched onto the main street, demons and vampires and witches on all sides of him. It was at times like this that he preferred the simplicity of the human realm.

The magic distorted the scents and he hated it, and Deidara's was significantly weaker. He had managed to trace it into a club of sorts, and while he couldn't figure out if it led _out, _he couldn't decipher it at all once he entered. The assault on his nose was enough and he attempted to lower his hightened sense of smell. It'd do more damage now trying to sniff Deidara out against the different scents.

Sasori found another wolf pack in the corner, drinking heavily by the bar with amicable faces and barrelling laughter. The manliness flowing off them was enough to make him nauseous. What was it about pure breds that made them need to be so…_manly. _He shied away from them and sought out 'blonde'. Anything blonde that moved and he zeroed in on it - there were a few witchy-types, but their glassy eyes weren't blue enough.

"You," A hand steadied him against the wall. "Are one slippery little thing" Sasori raised an unimpressed eyebrow at the guy. Didn't smell like wolf, or look like a witchy-warlock. Might be a demon in human-form, but why he'd hide his true nature in a supernatural _bar _was strange.

"And?"

His arm was seized, the guy leaning closer. _Not this again. _Sasori whacked the hand away. Yes, Deidara practically owned his ass but he was by no means a sissy. Speaking of, that blonde over in the corner had just the right hair length.

"Your boyfriend isn't paying you any attention" The man tried again and Sasori ground his teeth.

"And?" He repeated. The thing didn't need to know that- wait. "How the fuck do you know what my boyfriend is doing?" The mans eyes glossed over like spherical mirrors for a flash. "Ah, shit" Sasori grumbled. Oracles. If you got a nice one, they were useful. If you got a bad one, they were annoyingly _insightful. _

"You deserve all the attention you can get"

"Get off my leg" Sasori snatched the invading hand.

Oracles weren't particularly strong, much like humans in that respect, but they were usually quick to see the attack and react accordingly. This one was drunk and now suffering because of it. He doubled over as Sasori twisted his arm and shoved the man into the wall and levelling his knee to his groin. The man gripped Sasori's wrist and tugged, holding his hand in midair. Sasori cursed himself; he didn't have much experience with Oracles at all.

He was hoisted over the oracle's shoulder like a sack moments later.

"You're gonna' die, fucker. Put. Me. Down" But Deidara was in sight, his lips a glossy red as he danced and drank from what looked like one of those witches. His eye was on him the entire time while the Oracle attempted to manouver somewhere less crowded with Sasori slung over his shoulder, and Deidara was just feeding. The witch twisted out of his grasp and Deidara seemed reluctant to let go, but then he found someone else to distract his attention. Sasori almost screamed at him.

Blue coated his vision and then Sasori was plucked off the oracle's shoulder as easy as removing a bit of dust. A quick shove sent the oracle panicking, and then he quickly made a retreat muttering his apologies to the demon.

"Kisa-"

"Save it" The demon hissed. "I didn't think you were this stupid, Sasori"

"I'm _sorry" _He wailed, the music too loud and Deidara too fucked up and he was so damn tired. "I'm fucking sorry!"

Deidara was causing havoc. The happy wolf pack at the bar had been disturbed - and a vampire wasn't a match for a pack of them, even one as old as Deidara was. And those witches were talking, rubbing their necks sadly as the wolves 'played' with the vampire.

"Stay here. I swear to Jashin, if you move an inch - I'll let them tear him to pieces" Sasori froze against the wall as Kisame stormed over to the wolf pack - but Deidara had other ideas. He'd escaped the wolves and disappeared off down a corridor; Sasori expected Kisame to follow, and he was confused when he walked back to him.

"He's bleeding again; sniff him out"

"I can't, it's too much" The scents in the street had been enough and he'd been breathing through his mouth to avoid the enslaught in the club.

"Suck it up. Find him" Kisame ordered. Sasori tried, vaguely following Deidara's bloody trail while trying to remain conscious. His senses were flooded, everything becoming hazy and burning his nose.

"In there" He motioned to a side room and Kisame opened the door first. Deidara was splayed out on the ground, his hair everywhere, his body all one sliver of length. Blood pooled around him, his face pale and corpse-like. Sasori rushed to him, heart erratic. 

"I'm sorry, Dei" He wiped back the hair from the face, the blue eyes open and sightless. "I'm so sorry"

"Ko," Kisame breathed, and Sasori's head jolted up. Konan was stood in the corner of the room, just as sightless as Deidara was. Her face was pale, her eyes blue and her hands shaking at her sides, her fingertips dotted with blood. Sasori realised the blood had pooled collectively around Deidara in an outline of a circle - a magical trap - and Konan's bare toes were dipped at the trail she'd made to keep her distance.

Despite her glossy gaze, her eyes were amber now and tempestuous - magical - and betrayed as she stared back at him.

"Sasori. Open a portal back Home. Now" Kisame said, deathly quiet as he stared right at Deidara's still body - refusing to look at Sasori. Clearly, he'd done enough damage for one night.

OOO

Deidara's body was dumped on Sasori's bed with a 'thump'.

"Pass me those chains" By the door was an open bag full of thick, strong, silver chains and Sasori eyed them carefully.

"All of them?" He said quietly, wondering if Deidara's thin body could handle even more strain.

"Do not argue with me" Kisame warned him and Sasori lugged them over and wordlessly, handing them to his brother. The demon proceeded to chain the blonde to the bed and Sasori refrained from howling in despair.

"I don't think you realise how selfish you're being" Kisame uttered, bulky arms folded across his chest once he was finished. He loomed over him like an angry parent.

"The favours we've all done, the sacrifices we've made, the patience we've endured to make sure that this son of a bitch stays alive" A quick head motion to Deidara and Sasori's confidence plummeted. "And you take him _out _of the home that we allowed him into - _for everyone's safety" _

"I just wanted-"

"I know" Kisame's voice deepened, but not in anger. "I know" He repeated. "You can't do anything with him like this, Sasori" He said quietly.

"But at least I can see him and talk to him…even for my own peace of mind…"

"The only reason we kept you apart was because we couldn't risk another infection - he's not completely sound. He's a danger to everyone. Fuck knows how many people he bit in that place - we don't know if this is contagious. We don't know what we're dealing with. You should have known better"

"He's been fine" Sasori whispered. "He was fine. Not even a scratch on me…"

"_Yet"_

"What about your project?" Sasori tried to deter him.

"He's okay for a day or so; which means a day or so is all I have to spare" And then, after a while, "I know he broke your wrist" Kisame said quietly, eyeing the unconscious blonde. "I don't care what Zetsu said and you were stupid to go down there - even stupider to take him out"

Sasori remained silent and the demon assessed his work.

"We're not doing this because he's a vampire, you know. You're our brother; we're doing this for you" Sasori would rather they not do anything at all. "Konan even-" Kisame flinched and sighed, rubbing his hands over his face and through his hair. Sasori felt sick. "Look, he can't move; you can sleep next to him if you want. Put cushions on the chains for padding or something. I'll be downstairs. When he freaks out, come and get me"

OOO

**Flashback.**

Deidara was used to being on his own, fending for himself and keeping away from the other vampires and their trouble-stirring lives. He'd never expected to find anything more than a few friends, and certainly not a friend in the form of an eight year old human-_thing _half breed. There was something about having Sasori around that made him feel less dangerous - and that was a thought that he'd later spent years mulling over.

Sasori didn't know that Deidara had been starving that night they came across each other - that it would have been so easy for Deidara to just kidnap him for a few minutes and return him to the market place where someone else would worry over his blood loss. But that fierce look in his eyes, determined to find whoever it was he was looking for, Deidara had watched him wander in circles for a good ten minutes before his hunger ebbed and curiosity took over. When the boy finally showed some signs of distress, and happened to start moving in the opposite direction of the market, Deidara simply followed.

He kept an eye on him as the boy weaved in and out of people, looking around frantically for something to recognise. It was only when the cheeks tinged with pink and his heartbeat turned erratic that Deidara thought maybe he should offer some help. But surely there were more help-inclined people - who could resist such a cutie?

Some witches had stopped, circling him with curious faces and their long nails at their chins. The boy was turned around, their comely bodies and their long hair and big eyes were always a distraction. They bent to his level, beckoning him closer like sirens, and he watched with ever-ready limbs. He'd get the boy out of trouble if it found him, but the witches fought like cats and he hadn't yet been for his hunt.

The boy defiantly turned them away and they left with pouting faces and waving into the crowds. The boy was abandoned and despite the determination in his eyes, his heartbeat felt like a punch into his gut when he zeroed in on it. He wandered around some more, trying to find a high spot for a better vantage point to navigate back to the market. The best he could do was a brick wall, leaping up to it with practiced precision and balanced there like a dog. He stilled, concentrating, and Sasori watched his eyes scan the roads and his ears twitch at their sounds. Something about the human-thing half breed was animal. Perhaps he was a shifter, or a wolf - though, a young one of either might have already learnt how to find their way back to their family. The boy was either a hopeless case or hadn't yet properly learned how to hone his talents.

His surrender was obvious, he groaned and thumped the wall before he jumped back to floor level. The night was darkening and the older creatures were out now, a few vampires lingering in the doorways while the demons debated which bars to go into. It was amicable and friendly, it had to be because anything else wasn't tolerated. If you couldn't maintain peace in the Arcane Territories then you were thrown into a cell until they decided what to do with you. They wouldn't hurt the boy, but there was nothing to stop them from scaring him, which they obviously did.

The demons were big to his small frame, monster-like, he supposed. His heart was racing so much that Deidara felt like passing out _for _him - it was strange. The vampires smiled at him as he passed, but the boy probably perceived it as something else because his walk quickened into a jog.

He was running in the opposite direction, panicked. Deidara dropped down from his rooftop meanderings and 'accidentally' bumped into him. The boy wheeled himself away and burst into tears.

Those salty tears were reminding him very quickly about his lack of nourishment. That heartbeat was taunting him; all he could hear was it's pumping and all he could imagine was the wasted blood that was working its way around the boys system.

"Hey, come on" He said softly, keeping his body loose so as not to appear too threatening as he crouched down. "Calm down, okay" The boy must have been half-something, but clearly he was too human to deal with anything. "You're okay, just breathe, un" He didn't need some kind of 'change' on his hands - which would probably happen if the thing got too scared or started to hyperventilate or something. He had no idea how to handle changelings, or shifters or wolves for that matter.

"I hate this place" The boy whined, turning away to brush away his tears. "I hate everything here - it's so stupid"

"What's your name, un?"

"…Sasori" He admitted quietly. "I need to get back to the market" He then said, the panic returning. "What if she leaves without me?"

"How could anybody leave without you, un?" Deidara smiled a little smile, careful to keep his lips closed and his fangs hidden. "I'm Deidara"

"You're human, right? You smell human…." Sasori was all of half of his height with eyes wider than dinner plates. Deidara avoided lying and gave another close lipped smile, leaning down and giving the red head some more reassurance.

"You said you needed to get to the market?" Sasori nodded eagerly. "I can take you"

"If you could even point me in the right direction, I'm sure I'd be okay" He replied nervously. "But… the mean ones are out and I don't like-"

"Mean ones? Other kids?"

"No - the bad ones. The demons and those weird horned things and the vampires" _Mean ones, _Deidara might've laughed had he not been so stunned. He was a _mean one? _ He was going to have to rectify that problem instantly.

"I'll take you straight there un, and I'll fend off any _'mean ones' _that come at you"

"Really? I can pay you, I have some money left, ah, wait" He rummaged in his pockets and brought out something that Deidara didn't recognise. "No, it's foreign - and human. That doesn't work here, huh?"

"Unfortunately not" Deidara eased Sasori's money-loaded, gloved hands back into his pockets. "It's alright; I'm sure we'll think of something on the way, yeah"

Deidara stood up and walked ahead, despite sensing the boy standing still in the spot he'd left him at. Three seconds after he'd rounded the corner, the boy caught him up and glued himself to his side. He was silent for the first few minutes, but the roads got busier and Deidara was getting impatient. Kids walked so slow! And it wasn't as if he could drag him up to the rooftops and scale them with his new red-headed attachment in tow. The kid would throw a fit.

"Deidara," Sasori said suddenly holding his hand. "What are they?" He motioned with his free hand to the winged demons huddled around a table outside a bar.

"Winged demons" He said simply, nobody could pronounce their actual demon titles. Sasori flinched and leaned in closer and Deidara's plan settled in his mind, perhaps starting with something a bit easier than those winged demons.

He spied a few witches that he knew were walking in the same direction - towards the market. He called them over and Sasori stiffened and tried to hide beside him, but he quickly introduced them all and the boy was being fawned over before he could say _'nice to meet you'. _They did little sparkler tricks which he seemed unimpressed with, so they wrapped him up in vines and tickled him with flowers until he gave in and said they were 'nice'.

After that, Deidara worked his way through the streets, seeing people he knew and introducing Sasori to them with cautious care.

He'd been tight lipped with the demons until they'd asked him to choose the winners prize in their arm-wrestling game. When Sasori picked that the winner had to ask a witch out on a date - and all hell had broken loose because the others wanted to play as well. Sasori had loved every minute - wanted to stay - but Deidara reminded him that his time was probably running out. They moved on quickly through the ranks, eventually ending up in the middle of the market after a kindly 'horned demon' had given Sasori a fake tattoo.

"Deidara," Sasori was on Deidara's shoulders, keeping an eye out for his grandmother among the crowds. Though he was half convinced that Sasori was 'scenting' him, he couldn't be sure and didn't want to alert the boy to the fact that he knew. "I'm sorry I said they were mean ones"

"Un" Deidara smiled, but doubted Sasori could see it. "Then that's payment enough, yeah"

"You sure?" He asked hesitantly.

"I'm sure" And he was also very starving. Like, contemplating the kidnapping plan again, kind of starving. Despite all of their stops, Sasori had gripped his arm whenever he'd tried to leave. If the kid didn't find his grandmother soon…

"There! I see her!" Sasori shuffled down before Deidara was ready to release him, but had no trouble dropping to the floor and tugging Deidara through the crowds to his grandmother.

They shared a quick reunion hug, and he got a brief scolding before she rubbed his hair and eventually listened to his story - about how he got lost and this really nice human had walked him back and made him see that not all the 'mean ones' were actually mean.

Deidara had left before the guilt could stab him in the chest and the boys look of betrayal could paralyse him. He'd sort of liked the kid, ignored his hunger (mostly) to keep him occupied - he didn't do that for just anyone. When Sasori was ready to introduce him, spinning on the spot to try and find where he'd 'left' his new friend, the confusion on his face was evident. Deidara watched from the shadowed rooftops, his grandmother encouraging him along despite his protesting.

_"He's got to be here somewhere, I know it" _He was saying, frowning, looking betrayed and looking everywhere - his ears twitching, his eyes scanning everything. Deidara's gut clenched, his head fuzzy. _Need to hunt, _he reminded himself.

He poised to move and Sasori's head swept up, wolf-like and alert and straight to Deidara's position. His face fell in realisation as Deidara grinned, fangs and all. He expected the red head to gape, swear, throw a fit - but instead he raised his hand and waved. Deidara had never been so relieved about anything since he'd been successfully reborn as a vampire. It wasn't going to be the last time he saw that red head, that was for sure.

**End of flashback.**

OOO


	11. Chapter 11

**11: OOO**

Sasori couldn't stand it and had surrendered all hopes of getting his boyfriend back. He'd fallen asleep next to the blonde thinking that Kisame was an interfering liar, that Deidara would be okay given time and rest and care. When he began to bleed again, and those hateful words spewed from Deidara's mouth like Sasori was the worst person in the universe, Sasori cleaned the blood away and convinced himself that this was the hard part that Deidara would have to push through. In reality, it was probably a relapse - and that brief calm interlude they'd shared was probably the last he'd ever have.

When Deidara tugged ceaselessly against the chains, the bed cracking under the strain, Sasori begged him to stop. When he started convulsing again, the black veins standing prominent against his pale skin, he was out of encouragements and soothing words. He lifted his weighted feet all the way to Kisame, wondering if his brother would offer sympathy or help first.

"It's okay" Kisame said standing up, taking out his phone and aiming for the stairs - up to Deidara.

"He's in pain, isn't he?" Sasori winced as another one of Deidara's bone-shattering yells wracked the halls. "He's actually dying" Kisame didn't bother answering him, probably because nothing he could say would make any difference to Sasori's internal pain. Sasori wandered into the living room, immediately facing his grandmother. The judgement was there in her eyes, not condescending, just disappointed.

"Don't start," He warned her, heading to the kitchen before she could give him an answer. Konan wasn't in there. There was a bowl of half-mixed something, clearly interrupted, and the idea that Konan had simply adandoned it to help him made him feel aweful. She'd usually be cooking or baking something, her usual distraction for everything, but the kitchen had been left mid-work. Whatever she'd been doing, she hadn't returned to it. Sasori instantly blamed himself.

There was a monster in her house, in the form of his boyfriend; why would she come back? He'd scared her out of her own home, what kind of person did that make him?

Kisame came and went within the hour - back to him _'damsel' _project after taking a quick video of the suffering blonde - for 'research' apparantly.

Deidara was back in Zetsu's lab under constant sedation, though he was more lenient with the chains than Kisame had been. Sasori kept away, despite the frequent visitors to his room he had no motivation to do anything. He couldn't eat, didn't want to move or cry or yell. The sheets that Deidara had been on didn't even smell like him; it was nauseating.

"Eat this" Kakuzu plated something in front of him and he thought it smelled like Chiyo's soup. "We don't need anybody else dying under this roof; eat the soup, or I won't tell you anything" Sasori picked at it under his brothers scrutinising gaze, sure that he'd throw it back up in less than half an hour.

Once he set the almost-empty bowl aside, Kakuzu nodded in acceptance.

"Kisame has a plan. There should be news of possible treatment in the morning" It gave him a numb feeling; he wasn't sure whether to allow the smallest inch of hope creep into his body, or whether or not to ignore it completely until Deidara was his usual lively self.

"Hidan and I will be gone for a while - helping Kisame with a … chaotic situation" Which usually meant they'd be helping to cause the chaos. "We won't be long" Kakuzu took the bowl and left and Sasori threw it up five minutes later. He didn't know how much longer he could cope. And Konan still hadn't returned.

OOO

He ran his fingers over Deidara's exposed skin, back to its usual chilled temperature albeit with a slightly off colour. Zetsu had let him in for a while; Kisame or Konan hadn't been in contact to agree or disagree and Chiyo - as the nearest of kin to Sasori - was okay with it as long as he was supervised. So Zetsu stayed in the shadows as Sasori tried to gather his thoughts.

Even if Kisame did come back with some magical cure, he was sure Deidara wouldn't be the same. His body had been through too much, even Zetsu agreed that unless there was a healing agent inside the medicine, Deidara could recover from the "illness" and still be left with its damage. His internal organs were pretty much dead or decaying now, his "blood system" the only thing weakly keeping everything else ticking over.

Kakuzu had apparently already confirmed that the blood which had been decaying and regrowing before was now doing nothing; Deidara would run out of blood to feed the rest of his body. When that happened, they all seemed certain he'd die. Cease to exist.

Chiyo had suggested putting the blood directly into his system, but there was then the possibility of it being rejected. At that stage, it would either be the virus or the inevitable violent rejection that would kill him.

"He can't feel it, can he?" He asked Zetsu, Deidara's cold skin burning against his own warm hand. "My touch?"

"We'd say not" His brother quietly. "But there's been a lot of things he shouldn't be able to do which he's overcome. It's possible he could"

"I don't think so" Sasori knew when the hairs on Deidara's arms didn't rise to his touch. There was nothing about that almost-corpse on the bench that recognised him.

It was an agonizing wait. Sasori wasn't sure how long Kisame would need to get the cure, or even if he could - though secretly he knew that if anybody could, Kisame was the best option.

He was sat on the work bench, his body pulled as close together as he could make it as he watched over Deidara's body. He could feel Zetsu getting restless, probably bored, and supposed he should probably leave…but he couldn't bring himself to move away.

When the depressed feeling of 'impending doom' prickled his body, Sasori's first thought was to lock the door. He'd keep Gaara out, why let his cousin make this any worse?

But then he could hear yelling and made his way with heavy footsteps into the main room. It was almost worth leaving his almost-dead boyfriend for - because Gaara had made _contact. _

A dark haired boy was flailing, angry, but Gaara was more than furious.

"Open the fucking portal!" The dark haired one demanded.

"I'm not a fucking taxi. He had his chance, he didn't move"

"It's my brother!"

"And he's with Kisame. Couldn't be more safe"

"Gaara," The dark haired boy gripped Gaara's hand - which was clamped solidly around his wrist. _Contact. _Sasori might've been happy if his boyfriend weren't dying and these two _children _interfering with any possible hope of a recovery. "Take me back"

"Give me the papers" Gaara's other hand shot out.

"Take me back!"

"I can't. There was a reason Kisame had to open it"

The boy slammed the papers to the floor, his foot whipped around to kick Gaara - a futile move. The boy went flying, Gaara remaining intact and unmoved until he bent to retrieve the papers.

"They've been translated by a reliable source, I'm told" He said quietly. "But it's work in progress, and trial and error. You'll have to make it from scratch". He passed them to Zetsu with a look that Sasori couldn't read. The demon then went back into the lab and Sasori made to follow.

"You don't want to follow" Zetsu said, his voice deep and sure. "We can't have you watching"

"Sasuke, we're leaving" Gaara put his ring to the wall and motioned his friend closer. A chill crept up Sasori's spine when the boys eyes flashed an angry red in rebellion.

"You're a Uchiha" His head swam; it was their fault that his boyfriend was dying on a slab in the basement.

"Oi" Gaara tugged Sasuke in a fist full of sand, throwing him into the portal first and holding up a hand to ward Sasori's advancements. "Kisame has plans for him too. I can't kill him, and neither will you"

"I hate you" Sasori couldn't understand. His cousin was changing too rapidly - he was on a first name basis with The Enemy - and as much as Gaara hated Deidara you'd think there'd be some support for Sasori at least - and now he was siding with them? Kisame too? "Screw this" He made for the front door, bursting out and pacing the grounds. He longed to leave and stay, to fight or run, to cry or laugh and yell without having an ounce of energy to do so.

A cool hand slipped into his shaking one and he immediately felt numb. It was a calm from the torrent raging inside of him, and Konan's stillness at his side made his anxiety melt away.

OOO

Sasori and Konan stayed outside until it was cool and the sky had gone dark. He felt guilty because despite their shared warmth and their joined hands, Konan looked tired and pale and was more than due an explanation and a severe apology. Whenever he tried to approach it, she smiled softly at him and shook her head - as if it didn't matter. As if she hadn't-…..

"I don't blame you" She said quietly, her hand tightening around Sasori's. "I'd have done the same"

"No you wouldn't" Sasori smiled at her, but it was clear her emotions were in turmoil. "I'm sorry you got involved - I know you didn't-"

She shook her head again and Sasori accepted the finality. She didn't want to talk about it and clearly he was forgiven for his misdeeds. He briefly wondered at what cost - her trust? Her faith?

When the chill got too much, Konan wordlessly pulled Sasori up and walked him back inside, the warmth hitting and enveloping them instantly. Sasori felt better wrapped in the safety of his house and the heat, and in Konan's good-books too…but his heart felt like ice as she took him towards the basement.

"Kisame's just got back…" She said quietly, and then frowned. Sasori wasn't sure if that was a sign for him to choose - to go and see if Kisame was alright, if his mission went okay, or if it was an excuse for him to change his mind.

"I'd like to see Deidara, if that's okay with you" Sasori said surely, and Konan opened the basement door with a warning to Zetsu that they were coming down. Each step felt like a death sentence and Sasori debated running back up and hiding. He didn't want to know anything other than Deidara making a miraculous recovery and being perfectly fine. He couldn't handle Zetsu telling him that all of their efforts had been for absolutely nothing.

"You have a friend, there" Konan stopped at the bottom of the stair, her body still with shock. She knew whenever anybody was in the house, intruder or not, and Sasori felt instantly on guard. Konan was going to be on eggshells for the rest of the week, at this rate.

"We needed his help" Zetsu said, passing his 'friend' a few things. "Some of the ingredients are out of our….knowledge. He has been helping us to find them. I apologise" Konan's wariness of the stranger was no secret. She didn't move any closer inside Zetsu's lab and because of it, Sasori was cautious too. But Deidara was still lying unchanged on the table.

Sasori couldn't see a change and could tell by Zetsu's quiet concentration that he was still working to his limit. There was no point in interrupting him. Sasori sat on the steps, watching silently as Konan studied the stranger in confusion. When the stranger quietly said something and Sasori barely caught the word '_Zet' - _he knew it was the same friend from before, that had lured him out of the basement for the 'ten minutes' that Sasori had seen Deidara.

"Zetsu has a friend - an actual different friend" Sasori said quietly, and Konan eventually came to sit on the step next to him.

"One they can both agree on" Konan nodded, and Sasori quickly noted that she was right - that both of Zetsu's personalities seemed to like and work with him. "Kakuzu and Hidan just got back" She said, loud enough for Zetsu to hear it.

After five minutes, Kakuzu came down drying his hands and stopping at the stair the two were sat on.

"The UCF is no longer a concern" Kakuzu said quietly, lingering on the staircase. "The Uchiha is still in there with Kisame - they seem to be closer" Konan nodded slowly and Sasori reassessed his words.

"Closer?" He echoed. Kakuzu flopped a hand on Sasori's head - a brief moment of reassurance - before indicating upstairs to Konan. As she stood up, Kakuzu went to help Zetsu and his friend and Sasori wobbled to a stand. He followed Konan out, his mind elsewhere until he heard faint chattering in the living room.

It was clear from the way Kisame was talking so casually to him that he was fond of him, almost…proud? As Sasori breathed quietly, he caught the Uchiha's scent and realised he was some kind of wolf breed. There was nothing familiar other than the faint trace of having shifted recently - and it was new- A kiss?! He listened, hearing something about 'South of France' and automatically remembering the sweet little place with the front gate and the wonderful kitchen.

"They're _flirting?" _Sasori murmured in disbelief, watching Kisame's reactions and the way he stroked the others hair back.

"Sasori," Konan warned, but the red head was already marching ahead. He'd whacked Kisame's solid face before he could think of an insult. Kisame's reflexes were flawless and that hit had been allowed.

"You hate my boyfriend but you'd happily take in a lying, murdering, degenerate of a fuck-up?" Kisame stood up, being sure to keep in between Sasori and the Uchiha wolf. "Deidara is dying because of him!"

"He also helped get the information that could save him" Kisame said slowly.

"It might not even work - he could have been lying! How could you trust him?"

"You trusted the vampire" Kisame said evenly. "I trust Itachi. I get it now"

"You can't even- that's not the same! I've known him for years, you've known him a few days?!"

"How long did it take you to be sure to trust your vampire? A few hours?" Sasori wouldn't admit that Kisame was right. It hadn't taken long, and Sasori had always trusted his instincts - Deidara's concluding trustful act had been when he'd safely guided him back to his grandmother, having been just eight years old in a totally different world, separated and lost for over an hour.

"You don't realise how difficult it was for me to trust Itachi with something like this" Sasori couldn't think of an immediate comeback, or any comeback at all. "Knowing what Deidara meant to you-"

"Means" Sasori scowled. "He isn't dead yet"

"You were going to leave!" Kisame growled. "You think I'd risk that so easily?" The anger filtered onto his face in seconds. "To risk losing you, by trusting someone that yes - could have been lying, or spying, or damn well wasting my time? You think that was a split second decision?" Sasori's anger settled. "I used him as a last resort - Kakuzu told me countless times that I had a fucking ace in my pocket, I could have risked it earlier. I didn't. I exhausted every other fucking option, Sasori. Don't you dare think I didn't weigh up the consequences"

Sasori eyed up the Uchiha, clearly an older, longer haired, stoic and fightless version of the younger, flailing child that Gaara had brought along.

"You're defending him" Sasori murmured, turning to Kisame. "After all those times I defended Dei and you shot me down…looked at him like he was a threat. You expect me to … to just accept him?"

"He isn't like the others, Sasori" Kisame's voice was sure and honest. "Itachi can't do anything else"

"Neither will Dei, because he'll be dead - and it'll be _his _fault" He wanted to be angry at Kisame but he couldn't, so the Uchiha was his best bet. He was still and silent on the sofa that Kisame was stood in front of, watching him with those red eyes. He couldn't trust him, not yet.

"I'd like him to stick around" Kisame said cautiously. "Not here, not yet. But with me"

"I don't care what you do" Sasori said bluntly. He did, really. He wanted Kisame to be happy and if being with the Uchiha made him happy then so be it. But Sasori couldn't be a part of that just yet. He needed his boyfriend alive, and even then it might take time.

"If you're mad at anyone, be mad at me. I made the decisions"

"Okay" Sasori nodded once and could tell it wasn't what Kisame had been expecting. "Enjoy France" He turned on his heel and left, marching up to his room and hiding under his duvet like a child. Sorting out his emotions would take time - he couldn't hate Kisame completely, didn't want to trust the Uchiha - but he knew if Kisame did then inevitably they all would sooner or later. He wanted Dei to pull through, then the Uchiha's information would have helped and maybe there would be one less reason to hate him or be annoyed with Kisame. But he was sure Deidara wouldn't feel the same, and Sasori couldn't lie to him.


	12. Chapter 12

**AN: I apologise in advance for the long chapter - I have absolutely no consistency, no matter how hard I try! I own nothing, as usual. Read on!**

**OOO**

He snuck into the lab when an hour had passed and nobody had come to find him. Zetsu gave him a glance, Kakuzu offered a warning and the 'friend' silently watched as Sasori tried to notice a difference in his boyfriend.

"We can only wait" Zetsu explained, and it was then that Sasori realised they were putting things away. Whatever that had done, they'd done. It would either work, or it wouldn't.

"When will you know?" Sasori asked, touching Deidara's bare arm and seeing no hairs rise to his touch, no reaction from his nerves, his body freezing. _Too cold. _

"We aren't sure. We administered the drug five minutes ago, and so far…" _Nothing. _"They were on a whole different level" Zetsu muttered, lightly touching the papers that Gaara had given to him. "The combinations, the research…" Sasori's stomach flopped; if Zetsu was impressed, awed, or even amazed by whatever the UCF had been doing - then maybe it was a good thing Kisame had kept that Uchiha on hand.

"We're going to have to be careful" Kakuzu told them. "If these drugs are still out there, it's going to be dangerous for our hunts. We shouldn't presume it's over just because the facility has been shut down. But I'm more than happy to dig into their research, it's quite…thorough"

"I don't want to hear about that place" Sasori felt his skin crawl at the mere mention of it. "I don't want to hear how brilliant they all are, and how it was all down to luck that Deidara even has a hope of waking up"

"Maybe we should be thankful that luck was on our side" Zetsu replied. "There was no guarantee this was going to work …" Zetsu rightly shut up, but whether or not it was because he saw Sasori's fists tightening at his sides…

"We've kept the heating off down here, we're hoping it'll keep his temperature neutral" Kakuzu offered. "It will get cold" Zetsu agreed by nodding and Sasori took the hint. He took another look at Deidara, ran a hand through the matted, dull locks out of familiarity, and then went back to his room.

He checked on him every day - just once so he didn't annoy Zetsu - in the evening before he went to bed. He didn't check in the morning because he knew it'd ruin his day and he'd be able to think of nothing else.

He didn't check in the afternoon because once he'd spend the morning convincing himself not to think about Dei, so he did his best to keep occupied.

The evening was a logical choice, and he felt better knowing that if he hadn't gotten worse during the day, then he'd be okay at night. The only problem was that Sasori's body had decided to rebel, as if staying awake at night would help bring Deidara back quicker.

Before he knew it, he was sleeping the morning away, occupying his afternoons with making his puppets and seeing if Deidara was still alive before he went to bed again.

When the second week approached and there had been no change, Sasori seriously considered packing his things. He was tired of the waiting game.

_ OOO_

"Hey," Kakuzu stuck his head around the door and waved a hand. Sasori groggily woke up, unaware if it was day or night or somewhere in between. "Sasori," Kakuzu said a little louder, and Sasori could only think of one reason that Kakuzu would be waking him up. He scrambled out of the nest he'd made in his bed and followed him down to the lab with eager footsteps.

Zetsu gave him a reassuring smile, his 'friend' hovering behind him in the shadows. Kakuzu led him to the surface that Deidara was lying on and the red head felt himself panic. The blood was back, pouring from his nose and ears and leaking from the corners of his mouth. Kakuzu prompted him close and Sasori shuffled nearer, his heartbeat racing.

"His temperature should be evening out" Zetsu said, and Sasori instantly touched Deidara to find out. He felt warmer than freezing, almost at his usual coolness.

"He's not dying?" Sasori asked.

"It looks worse than it is" Kakuzu said.

"But he's not dying?"

"…not quite just yet" Relief flooded him. "There's still a chance - there will always be a chance until he makes a full recovery, and we don't know how long that'll take"

"But for now," Zetsu came closer and quickly drew a blood sample. "We're confident it's working in our favour"

"He's bleeding out the bad blood" Kakuzu explained.

"We've tested it" Zetsu held up a blood-dried swab and then waved him over quickly. He ushered Sasori towards the scope and explained what he was seeing.

"This is our sample from before" Sasori recognised the sample that didn't have the silver blob, that was a black oozing mess. "The blood was decaying, when the body was trying to fix itself and the contamination continued to interfere" The slide switched.

"This is the swab from the blood he's leaking out" It was similar, black and oozy. "We would worry, but…ah, here" Another slide, and Sasori had never been so glad to see red blood. "There's no Supernatural Gene" Zetsu said cautiously. "So far, it's just rather ordinary. It's possible that…the virus may have stripped him of his err…affliction"

"So he's human?"

"Right now, yes" Zetsu said factually. So maybe his cool temperature wasn't much of a good sign.

"Normally it'd be impossible for him to grow that gene. It's either there, or it isn't" Kakuzu said.

"Do you think that's what it was supposed to do? Strip away the supernatural and make them vulnerable enough to hunt?"

"It's possible - it'd be a phenominal asset in gaining the upper hand" Kakuzu nodded. "But we won't feed him too much. A human won't gain nutrients from blood, and a vampire won't appreciate being plied with food. We'll keep an eye on him" Sasori hugged Kakuzu quickly and then Zetsu, stopping in front of the 'friend' cautiously.

"I should thank you, too" He said, with a tinge of regret that he hadn't said a word to the person, or even knew their name. "For helping, and being here…" He stuck out his hand and was surprised when a leather-gloved hand met it.

"Obito" He said quietly, and Sasori hoped he'd remember it.

"Thank you Obito"

He checked on Deidara more often, but he was making slow progress. He'd put away the bag he'd planned to shove his clothes into and instead focussed on making his room more vampire friendly. Deidara would be with him for as long as he could throughout his recovery. He'd debated going somewhere where the two of them could just be alone, but Kisame's words rang in his head each time he considered it.

_"The favours we've all done, the sacrifices we've made…" _

No. If his family were willing to help, then Sasori would make sure he didn't isolate himself with his boyfriend. He'd accept their help and their efforts and then they'd see that Deidara wasn't a threat. How could he be, now he was as harmless as a baby with a possible diagnosis of Human. The thought didn't even bother Sasori that much, but he knew it'd bother Deidara. He was used to his vampire lifestyle, the hunting games, the power. Sasori would love him regardless. The only thing he was even remotely concerned about was the fact that Deidara would never bite him.

A few days later Kisame came Home without the Uchiha, shadow-portalling into Sasori's room despite the red head still lying half-asleep in his bed.

"It's almost midday" Kisame chided, sitting on the edge and nudging Sasori's head.

"Is your degenerate in tow?" He murmured, earning his arm a whack.

"Itachi and I have moved into my place in the Demon Realm, but I'd like to come back here with him for a while. I've been away for longer than I'd like, and clearly things can't run without me"

"Konan's been fine; we don't need a father" Kisame laughed at that and Sasori knew they were okay. "So will the Uchiha be coming back here with you? Is that what you're saying?"

"I'd like him to, but I'm asking you first" There was a quiet moment where Kisame hoped and Sasori wondered if he could cope seeing the red-eyed man around their Home.

"Konan will let him in?"

"I'm asking you first" Kisame repeated.

"She refused to let Dei move in and I tried more than ten times" Sasori yawned and sat up. "And given our recent wrong-doings, I wouldn't be surprised if she put us all on house arrest"

"I'm prepared for her over-protectiveness, if you're okay with it"

"…He can't shift into pet-mode" Kisame blinked, confused. "He doesn't get to eat dinner with us every night like one of us and he can't have a ring. He can't shift into a wolf and have play time in the garden"

"You'll allow it?"

"Pfft," Sasori scoffed. "If Konan will agree with it…then I won't stop you from being happy. You did everything you could for Dei, I get that now" Kisame was quiet, as if unsure that Sasori was being serious. "Clearly your brothers aren't enough for you anymore" Kisame grinned and nudged Sasori's shoulder.

"You keep me on my toes, that's for sure"

Konan came in then, not at all surprised to see Kisame sat on Sasori's bed. Of course she'd known.

"Kisame wants to keep his pet in the House" Sasori said instantly, and he grinned as Kisame gaped in horror.

"I was going to approach it a little better than that" He hissed. Konan stopped, silent and still in the doorway. "See, now you've spooked her"

"You haven't got a hope anyway" Sasori argued. "She'll never let him in"

"Look, it was just a thought" Kisame turned to Konan and tried to fix her. "It's not a decision and you don't have to say yes. I'll still be around either way" She nodded slowly but the damage was done. Sasori immediately felt guilty once more. Konan was more fragile than glass, and seemed to be closing in on fracturing.

"…Deidara's awake" She said quietly, and Sasori wasn't sure she'd heard it right. "He's asking for you" Sasori bolted from his bed, feeling guilty as he left Konan's pale self behind and probably an annoyed Kisame on his bed. But Deidara was _awake._

He was half way down Zetsu's steps when he saw him, his back turned, his long blonde hair catching the harsh lights and shining with full vitality as he impatiently tried to get off the table Kakuzu had him cuffed to. Granted, his hair was a bit of a mess and probably tangled, but it wasn't dull and lifeless.

"Dei!" Sasori launched himself forwards and the blonde turned awkwardly to see.

"Wait un-"

Sasori had his arms around him before anybody could argue, never so thankful for Deidara's cool body temperature. He inhaled the Deidara-smell with abandon and didn't let his grip go until the room fell silent. He shuffled around so he could see his blonde better, stroking back the silky locks - ignoring the few tangles - and finding both of those gorgeous blue eyes.

He had so much he wanted to say - to show his relief that his boyfriend wasn't dead, that it didn't matter if he was a human now or still a vampire, that it was okay that Deidara had probably been in a coma for the better part of a month - but nothing could make it's way out. He found himself smirking instead, thinking of the many ways in which Deidara would forever be making up for Sasori's misery.

OOO

Deidara was on 'bed rest' for the rest of the week. They let him up for a shower and still chained him to anything they could until they were sure of his reactions. They'd temporarily moved one of the comfier chairs into the basement - Deidara's make-shift room. Zetsu wasn't there as often as he usually was, and Kakuzu seemed more lenient with letting the blonde alone with Sasori more than he should.

"Are you hungry yet?" Sasori brought down a tray of fruit and some animal blood that Hidan had procured. He settled both in front of his blonde and then waited for a reaction, some preference to one or the other. There had been a fair assumption that if Deidara went for the blood, his vampire tendancies and mechanics should still be intact - regardless of the now-show supernatural gene. If he went for the food - and it sustained him - he was entirely human once more. Their only hiccup had been that Deidara didn't seem to be hungry at all - for anything.

"No, un" Sasori picked at the fruit and nibbled at it. "Debate-causing question of the day?" Deidara asked, and Sasori nodded in agreement. It had been their routine that Deidara would ask a question which would inevitably get an argument - but needed to be asked for his own piece of mind. Previous ones had been wondering why Sasori hadn't just killed him sooner, or asking if he was forgiven for the attack in the woods. Today's was, "You were going to leave?" Sasori immediately lowered his head, would have flattened his ears and run away with his tail between his legs had he been colder - but he'd come prepared for the chilled basement and was cosily wrapped in numerous layers and his usual hat and gloves.

"I debated it" He murmured. "Twice" Deidara raised an eyebrow expectantly and Sasori sought out an inch of comfort. He shuffled his separate chair closer to Deidara and then gave up, shifting onto Deidara's lap with a whine.

"You're very docile considering all the free time you've had, un"

"Most of it was spent worrying about you" Sasori argued. "I told the others that if you died, I'd go back to the human world and pretend I'd never left"

"That you'd never met me?"

"Yeah" Sasori said. "I'd just forget about it"

"So everything I taught you would have gone to waste?"

"I didn't want to think about it" Sasori prodded at Deidara's arm. "You not being here…it's an entirely different world. I've never not had you, here"

"I'm disappointed, un" Deidara sighed. "I expected you to make something of yourself, not fall away to the equal level of my _food" _

"You didn't die, I didn't leave. We're good"

"Twice" Deidara reminded him. "When did you rethink it?"

"When you weren't reacting to the cure" Deidara stilled and Sasori continued. "I got my hopes up - I know it was stupid - and then you didn't do anything. You might _never _do anything and I didn't want to watch nothing happen. I had my bag out and everything, and then your temperature got better. You weren't sick for just a day, you're such a liar, Dei"

"Stop whining" Deidara murmured. "It's making me want to do things I can't while cuffed to this damn chair" Sasori shifted into Deidara's lap instead and the blonde groaned. "I'm sorry for worrying you - Ah" Deidara swiped his head to the side, gasping as Sasori nipped his ear. "If you don't stop that, I won't be responsible for my actions, un"

Sasori drew back, and with a brief flicker of inspiration, he popped a small piece of apple into his mouth and leant in to Deidara. Sasori hoped the intent was clear in his eyes, the apple piece now between his teeth, as Deidara sat back look at him. Sasori waited patiently until Deidara jerked his chin in the way that Sasori knew meant 'come here'. Mouth to mouth, Sasori slipped the apple over and pulled back, but Deidara clearly wasn't enjoying the fruit. He spat it out to the side and looked apologetic as he ducked in for a quick kiss. Sasori allowed it, but couldn't hide his disappointment.

"It's been days" He said, when Deidara slowed his kisses. "Aren't you starving?"

"Maybe I'm rebuilding my appetite, un"

"Try the blood" Deidara pulled a face as Sasori reached for it, unscrewing the cap and holding it in between them.

"It stinks, un"

"Hidan got it from somewhere"

"It could be anything!" Deidara scoffed. "I won't try that" Sasori's eyes flickered, the thought rushing into his head. He was expecting the blonde to say _'and I won't try you' _\- or something Deidara-ish like that. But the blonde suddenly looked rather shocked. "Get off" He nudged Sasori again, bucking his hips and wobbling his legs until Sasori all but fell off.

"Why? What's wrong?" Sasori frowned, watching as Deidara fiddled with his cuffs. "Do you want them off? Kakuzu said it should be okay if-"

"No" Deidara snapped. "Just checking…" He murmured, before turning to Sasori with that predatory look that he knew too well. "Kiss me, un" Sasori cautiously obeyed, not expecting the nip that Deidara gave his lip. When Sasori pulled back, Deidara was wriggling slightly, his eyes darkening with…something. It clicked.

"You look hungry" Sasori realised. "Like, ready-for-a-hunt hungry"

"Kiss me again," Deidara nudged himself forwards, straining his chains. Sasori's gut clenched, but he reassured himself with ease and stole another kiss. Deidara had his legs up and around Sasori's in an instant, pinning him in front of him. "Just stay still a second, un" Deidara's hair was tied back completely, revealing both his blue eyes and Sasori stared at them with butterflies in his stomach. It was odd, looking at them knowing only one could see him and feeling like both were watching. And so far? No headaches for Dei.

"Your birthday…when was it, un?" Deidara asked, frowning. Sasori counted in his head. "Did I miss it?"

"It's not for a few more days"

"You're still twenty?"

"Yes" Sasori frowned. "Why?" Deidara chewed his lip looking severely torn. "Why?" Sasori repeated, but understood completely when Deidara's gaze locked onto his neck with intent.

"I didn't realise there was a legal age to be bitten" Sasori said, more confidently than he felt.

"There isn't" Deidara licked his lip.

"Then why did you ask how old I was?"

"Didn't want to miss your twenty first, un - all sorts of celebrating to be done then" Hellfire, it was as if Deidara suddenly having two visible eyes meant that Sasori couldn't control his urges!

Sasori could feel his body burning with want, but he wasn't going to be bullied, tricked or forced into letting Deidara drink straight from him while the blonde was weak with recovery and Sasori was impatient and doped up on relief. No. Just because the blonde was looking better and feeling better and was most definitely getting his appetite back - no, he would eat the first thing he found appealing, say, _his boyfriend._

He'd not spent years of Deidara _declining _and refusing to drink 'straight from the source' only for him to be perfectly okay with it in his current position. It wasn't as if it would even be satisfying. If Sasori had his way, his blood would be the equivalent of afternoon tea for Deidara, or a treat after (or during) their bedtime activities. Not like _this. _Not as a make-do because he didn't fancy drinking anything else.

Deidara released his leg-hold around Sasori and allowed him to move backwards.

"You should go, un"

Sasori took another quick kiss from Deidara's lips and hesitantly left him alone; when he reached the corridor, Zetsu was waiting with a small smile on his face.

"Well done" He said simply, and Sasori frowned with confusion. In the basement, Deidara was counting down the days with impatience and excitement.

OOO

**Flashback.**

Deidara hadn't been expecting visitors and was surprised to find all three of them in his living room when he returned to his apartment, two of them arguing quietly. He recognised Konan first.

She was a killer magic worker and he didn't have to live with her to know it. She was the new witchy-friend that Sasori had made a few years before, eventually deciding to move into her too-large house with her hodge-podge family; a witch, a warlock, something _else, _and a few demons made up the household altogether- and now, Sasori too. With that in mind, Deidara didn't want to piss her off any more than he had to - but she'd already enforced limits on the rules of Sasori's stay - no vampire sleepovers. Which, when you considered that Deidara was awake all night and therefore sleeping over, basically meant he wasn't allowed to enter at all.

Arguing across from her was her male warlock companion, who was frowning in clear disagreement - his brow furrowed. The _other _one was sat on the sofa, next to an unconscious Sasori, watching them both with those ever-spiralling eyes. Sasori had tried to explain theose oddities and failed.

It was strange; in power, the three of them could match Deidara easily, but at that moment he felt like he'd walked in on a teenage argument. How old were they? Sasori was just over sixteen now, and Konan and her friends had always seemed a few years older, but looking at them he might rethink his judgement. They were just kids too - late teens, probably.

"Why are you here?" He asked, slamming the door shut behind him and turning to Konan first. She was tall, alluring in the way that most witches were, but she was the one he knew most. The other two he'd seen and never talked to. "What's wrong with him?" He immediately pointed to Sasori, lying on the sofa with his head in spiral-eyes' lap.

"I put a sleep spell in his drink, he'll wake up in a few hours" She explained nervously.

"Why?" Deidara demanded.

"Careful," The orange haired warlock stepped closer in defence. "Don't want to piss us off right now, dude"

"Don't start, Yahiko" Konan protested.

"We're not done" He told her, taking her hand and drawing her aside where they continued their quietly heated debate.

"We're already pissed off" Spiral-eyes murmured, and Deidara turned to him for an explanation. "We're being hunted; It's our fault and it has nothing to do with Sasori so we need you to take him until it's safe. Can you do it, or do we need to ask Chiyo?" The woman had a hard enough time letting him permanently live in the Arcane Territories with Konan and her family - her original plan had been for Sasori to stay with his cousins in Suna. Bringing this up would only upset everybody involved, Sasori most of all.

"I can take him, un" Deidara replied, and spiral-eyes nodded in agreement, shifting Sasori off his lap and standing up. He was practically invisible to Konan and Yahiko, both facing eachother and trying to get some control of the situation. Spiral-eyes led him aside, into another room, and the two didn't even notice.

"What's going on, un?" He asked. "And no bullshit - I need to know what I'm keeping him safe from"

"We've been betrayed" He said quietly. "We don't have anything against you personally, Deidara, but none of us three have ever had a good experience with vampires; one that we thought was our friend…we suspect he's given false information to the Law"

"You don't know for sure, un?"

His eyes seemed to spin and Deidara found it hard to ignore their intensity - even with his one working eye.

"He's a snake - who knows what he's been telling who about us" He whispered. "We helped him regain his health after an almost fatal accident - he was poisoned with snake venom. We never thought he'd betray us like this"

"Your Akatsuki" He recalled - the nickname for her House. He knew that Konan and her two friends prided themselves on taking in 'strays' - giving them a safe home in return for…well, he wasn't quite sure on what for. She claimed it to be 'family' - said as long as they were back for food, she didn't mind what they did. He originally thought she was joking, but from the stories Sasori told of them, he was beginning to change his mind.

"I suspect he's told the Law that we're harbouring known criminals and letting them pass illegally through portals"

"Those rings?" Deidara had heard all about them once Sasori had come back with it. Konan had magicked them all as an easy transport device - and her 'authority' to travel through the realms came from Chiyo herself. It wasn't illegal if Chiyo had settled that agreement.

"Hm" He nodded once. "Either way, if the Law thinks we're harbouring criminals, they won't be long. They'll attack soon. We're making preparations but…Sasori can't know - he never even met Orochimaru. He has nothing to do with this - shouldn't get involved"

"I understand, un. He can stay here"

"There are conditions" He added. "But Konan can fill you in on those…" He trailed off as the door opened, Konan appearing pink cheeked and tempestuous. Spiral-eyes left, Konan calmed herself down and Deidara grew increasingly impatient.

"Look, I know we're not…close" She started cautiously. "But I think I'm right in knowing that we both care for Sasori, yes?" Deidara nodded - no need to state that out verbally. "Then our only condition is this; that you not bite him until he's twenty one"

"That's…a very strange request, un" He frowned.

"It's not a request - it's a deal breaker. If you don't make a blood pact to do exactly that, then I'm taking him straight back to Chiyo instead. Will you do it or not?" The girl was a hurricane, her magical energy surging around her with impatience and worry and fear. Something was wrong.

"I'll do it, un"

She'd already dropped to the floor, cut her finger and was drawing out the blood-pact seal; he watched her with admiration until she held out the knife towards him.

"Cut your finger. Dot the middle of the centre circle" He did as he was told; as soon as he pulled his finger back she muttered a few things. The blood fizzled and dried, dissipating into nothing as her eyes flashed amber and his blood felt…detatched. For a flicker of a moment it felt as if he had no blood at all - but then all was right again. Blood-pacts weren't breakable by anything other than death; if he broke it, Konan could do whatever she wished to his body without being anywhere near him.

"I know I had no right to ask it of you, but…things aren't going to be easy for a while. He's probably going to feel lost and I know he'll turn to you. His emotions will be everywhere and I know there's been a few…concerns from Chiyo about you and Sasori's progressing relationship. I also know that vampires have a way of using emotions to their advantage" She blinked, paused for a few seconds and then said, "How exactly does that work?"

"You're asking me this now?" Deidara asked, but she stared at him with those amber eyes and he couldn't altogether stop himself from speaking. "We pick up their strongest emotion and act on it; It's a hunting thing. If I sense fear, I know to use it against them. If I sense calm, I know it won't work. It works both ways - not just for hunting, un. If he's panicked, I calm him. If he's happy, I keep him happy"

"And if he loves you?" She asked carefully.

"I'm keeping my distance, un" He admitted. "I'm not planning on breaking his heart, if that's what you're wondering"

"Sasori's body is still changing and I'm worried his emotions and hormones will be all over the place; I don't want you to take advantage of that"

"I wouldn't anyway, un" Deidara frowned. "I've had every opportunity since he was eight years old, un. I've not bitten him once"

"But he's sixteen now-"

"Yes he's fuckable but we're taking it slow - we're not even past making out on the sofa yet, un. Don't worry about that. I'll keep him safe. I have no desire to bite him - I actually like knowing I haven't done it yet, un. I'll hold off until his emotions are stable and he can decide for himself. Should be around the age of twenty one? Yes?"

She nodded, catching his drift. "Then I'm glad we're on the same page" She rose to a stand and sucked her bloodied finger.

"Hey, are you done?" Yahiko poked his head in. "We should get back; Kisame's calling, something about Anbu. Nagato's gone ahead-"

"Why?" She spluttered, the most uncomposed Deidara had ever seen her.

"You know why" Yahiko said, and Konan was out of the room in a shot. She hugged the unconscious Sasori and had gone through the portal the next.

"We'll be in touch" Yahiko promised. "I'm sure you can think of a story to tell him when he wakes up, okay?"

"Of course, un" He promised. "Be careful" He then said, watching as he disappeared after his friends through the portal and into whatever dire situation called to them.

Four days later, news of the Anbu's apparently spectacular assault to assassinate all of the 'Akatsuki' members had spread like wildfire throughout all of the realms. The witch and the 'warlocks' had been burned, the demons had been decapitated and all were set as 'examples'. Nobody saw hard evidence of their bodies, but why would anybody suspect Anbu of not completing their missions? They were the ultimate force in correcting anything that 'slipped through the supernatural net'. If the report said they were dead, they were definitely dead.

Nobody came back for Sasori, at least not straight away; Deidara had never been so happy to see Kisame stagger into his apartment uninvited. He told him nothing as he checked on Sasori, his body weak and clearly tortured. He left Sasori with Deidara for a few more days until they were sure the House was safe. When Kisame came back again, Sasori all but ran through the portal to check on everyone - who, as it turned out, were definitely _not _dead and very much alive.

While it took a few months for Deidara to physically see Konan once again, he never saw either of her two male companions - not the warlock or the spiral-eyed one he'd rather liked. He admired a cool head in a chaotic situation - Nagato, he'd been called. It was a while after, when Sasori eventually had the energy to speak -and Kisame had finally revealed the truth about those few nights - that Deidara was told that Yahiko was dead, Nagato was missing, and Konan was nothing more than a blank shell.

**End of flashback.**

OOO

Dawn was a few hours away, so Sasori went to shower and hoped it'd help him sleep. He hadn't been sleeping very well in between seeing Deidara and the nightmares of him being gone - resulting in his sporadic visits to check the blonde was really still alive. A few days past and the same routine grew tedious. He wondered how long it would take for things to settle down and resume some sense of normality.


	13. Chapter 13

**AN: Nearly there! Just the epilogue left, which for my own reasons has to be on a separate chapter, and is the reason this bit is shorter than the rest. That in mind, i'll just go ahead and put up the epilogue n' all!**

**OOO**

He woke up with Deidara-smell invading his senses and he inhaled it with abandon. He didn't care if he was still half-asleep and probably still dreaming, it was a scent he hadn't indulged in for so long. He was warm, wrapped up in his duvet like usual but with a chill creeping in from somewhere. He sought out the warmth and curled himself into it, the chill drifting away and then coming back. His neck ached - he'd probably slept with it twisted somehow. He sniffed a few times and still caught a drift of Deidara's scent, probably still lingering from his dream.

The left side of his neck felt numb and he rolled his shoulder to try and fix it. When it sent shockwaves down his back, he stilled. It felt like a puncture - like something was stuck in his neck.

His eyes bolted open, and in the darkened room he tried to make sense of what his current position was. _Deidara. _The chill was Deidara. He'd gotten under Sasori's duvet with him, and that scent wasn't a dream. Deidara's hair was shiny - even under the dull light - and his chilled body was neutral, if not a little shocking to Sasori's fuzzy warmness.

He had nothing but his thin night T shirt and pants to shield him from Deidara's cold arms, but he quickly ignored it in favour of the fact that _Deidara was in his bed. _A giddy excitement tickled his stomach and he almost yelled with delight, but his neck still hurt and Sasori now knew it was because Deidara had been awkwardly resting his head on it.

He grinned to himself for a long while before he managed to unwrap the duvet and peel it back an inch to see what time of day it was. The sunlight creeping in confused him, but it explained the dead-weight that Deidara had become. _And nothing but a threat…_

"Ow" His neck twinged as he moved it and he attempted to shift his body from his boyfriends. It was only when he felt his neck pulse with pain, and Deidara shuffled slightly closer into his neck, that he realised why.

"No!" He hissed, forgetting the pain and attempting to wrench himself away from Deidara, but his boyfriend had them pinned together, front to front and so very close. His suspicions were confirmed when his shoulder flushed with pain. "Fucking threat," Sasori grumbled, wondering why _he _wasn't a threat - why _he _couldn't be a damned threat that Deidara would wake up to!

"What the fuck did you do?" He whispered, glaring over Deidara's shoulder - more angered by the possibility (more than likely fact) that his neck had been hijacked in his sleep, his blood stolen. This wasn't how it was supposed to happen! He had plans! He planned for it like he'd planned for his first time with Dei and having it stolen out from under him, _in his sleep!_

Sasori wiggled his hand down inbetween them and grabbed Deidara's dick. Deidara was alert, awake in his usual snap-like fashion now threat had been established.

"Baby," He murmured, feeling Deidara's body shift slightly. "Kindly defang yourself from my neck before I skin you - ah!" Sasori felt his neck be freed and immediately felt it throb in reaction. When that appeared to be the only moving Deidara was going to do, Sasori growled. "You bit me!" When Deidara grunted, Sasori remembered his hand was still firmly wrapped and clenched around Deidara's dick. Sasori removed his hand and shoved at the blonde until he shuffled, his weight on his forearms - either side of Sasori's head. The duvet was still over them both and Sasori was feeling a little overheated. He blamed the anger.

"You fucking bit me, _in my sleep"_

"Un" Deidara frowned, his eyes seeming to focus more on the neck wounds second by second. He raised a hand to brush his finger over the wounds. Then he licked his lips slowly and Sasori watched the delight spread across his face. He knew that look, when Deidara had come back from a good hunt and a decent feed. _Satisfaction. Content._

Sasori flinched momentarily and then slapped him across the face. Part of him wanted to be proud that he'd satisfied his vampire in such a way, but the other part was livid.

"In. My. Sleep!" He stressed, pushing at Deidara's chest until his fingers were tangled in his Deidara's dangling locks and the blonde had to sit up for lack of space. The duvet slipped and Sasori got an eyeful of a glowing room; Deidara was outlined in a sunny glow, his face suddenly unimpressed as his back began to blister. Vampire disadvantages were still in play, apparantly. "Do you even remember doing it? Because I fucking don't"

"I don't remember… but you tasted _really _good, un" Deidara nodded, adamant.

"All those times! Every single one of those times I _offered _it and you _rejected _it without reason. And then you do this? I am pissed!"

"You can't be pissed on your birthday, un" Deidara fiddled with the duvet and ducked under it, blocking the sun out.

"You denta-raped me!" Sasori tossed the closest thing he could get his hands on; a pillow. "In my sleep!"

"Probably for the best, un" Deidara's eyes narrowed. "I don't think I'd have been patient enough to be gentle and stalk you" Sasori threw his fist and Deidara caught it without hesitation.

"I don't think you understand how serious I am about this" Deidara cuccooned himself as Sasori shot out from the bed, dressing himself rapidly to deprive his boyfriend of an eyeful.

"I think you're overreacting, un"

"No, no I'm not" Sasori snapped. "I now have grounds to break up with you. It's _that _serious"

"Why?"

"Look," Sasori tossed his T-shirt at his boyfriend and then regretted it. He was running out of clean clothes. "Remember our first time?" Deidara nodded eagerly.

"You were a very obedient pup, un" Sasori scowled at him. "What? It wasn't perfect, un. Nothing we do is ever perfect. You had the whole thing planned out to where the candles would be positioned and where my emergency exit would be, yeah. Not that any of that shit mattered when I took you in my bed, un"

"Forget it" Sasori flopped onto the bed next to Deidara and tried to calm down. "Clearly you take what you want when you want it and don't care for my planning _at all_"

"That's not true, un"

"It is for the only two things I ever wanted to be special with you-"

"It's your twenty first birthday present, un. What could be more special?"

"Don't you dare try and make this better, brat!"

"Don't you want me to do it again?" Deidara asked quietly, and Sasori's heart flipped.

"I might deny you for eternity" Sasori reasoned. "That'll be the one and only taste you'll ever get because you made a stupid mistake - why weren't you chained up?" He looked at Deidara's wrists, seeing them free of any markings. Of course they would be if he'd fed. "Why didn't you wake me up? Why didn't I wake myself up?"

"Maybe you thought you were dreaming, un" Deidara's eyes hovered over Sasori's bare arms - he hadn't managed to get his T shirt on, and there wasn't a single other mark on his body. For all he knew, Sasori might've cuddled into Deidara instead of trying to ward off the intrusion. It was just as likely.

"Don't talk to me for the rest of the day" Sasori snatched his shirt and put it on, flipping on his hoodie and yanking on his socks. "Or night" He added, seeing Deidara's tired smirk watching him. "In fact, seeing as you're vampirism is still intact, you can leave"

"You're being such a princess about this" Deidara canted his head. "I forgot how much I loved this side of you"

"You'll love it a whole lot more once this ass," Sasori turned around and looked over his shoulder with what he hoped was a sexy face. "is something you no longer own"

Sasori hoped that by staying away from his room, Deidara would be stuck there and unable to come out because of the sun. Of course, the blonde proceeded to follow the red head around while wrapped up in his duvet, a large marshmallow of a blob always lurking around Sasori's daily movements.

Eventually they both knew that Deidara would retire back to his natural instinct to sleep during the day - and it wasn't that much of a surprise when Sasori found him curled in an alcove securely wrapped up, shortly after he'd been bombarded with gifts and cards and birthday treats.

Sasori was satisfied with that ending until the sun went down and Deidara emerged fully rested and ready to hunt. Sasori didn't even care that he'd slept through his birthday, it wasn't as if it was anything special, really. Just another birthday gone.

"I'll be back in half an hour, un" He said hesitantly, and the rush of familiarity made him smile in reply. While Deidara was out, Sasori made a plan.

He still needed to repay his boyfriend for the multiple times he'd forsaken his own satisfaction in order to give Sasori his own, and now that the blonde appeared to be on the mend - vampire tendancies intact - Sasori hoped to test it with a game.

When Deidara came back, looking refreshed and lively and much more like his usual self - Sasori was waiting around the doorframe, peering in until Deidara caught him. He whipped back around, out of sight, and heard Deidara's footsteps close in on him. He moved, hiding around another corner and watching Deidara's reactions.

"This isn't how you hunt, un" He said with a grin.

"I'm not hunting you" Sasori said, out of sight as he stripped off his jacket and tossed it at Deidara. "You'll be stalking me" Deidara's senses whipped into action - Sasori could feel it like electricity in the air. Deidara's eyes on him - it brought a whole new feeling to his body.

Just as Deidara was lost around the corner, Sasori shuffled off his shoes and socks and looked up, Deidara already in front of him. He leant in and shot his tongue into Sasori's mouth without any kind of warning.

He was released quickly, Deidara moving back a few paces and peering around with his bright blue eye watching him. It was like playing with a cat! Sasori felt a tickle of nervousness - it had been a while since they'd played it like this.

He inched back up the steps, one at a time, all the while keeping Deidara in his view as he took off his shirt and dropped it down the steps. Deidara's eyes followed it momentarily and then snapped back up to him. Deidara would either wait at the bottom and sneak up - or-

"Shit!" Sasori watched as Deidara rocketed up the staircase, too fast to stop himself hitting the wall opposite.

"Keep going, un" Deidara slipped back into the nearest shadow, giving Sasori a bit of space (and metaphorical air to breathe) as he regained his composure and turned, aiming for the bedroom.

Sasori walked ahead - not rushing, depsite his heart telling him to _fucking run_ \- and felt completely overwhelmed as soon as Deidara's eyes settled on his ass. All he had to do was walk, knowing the blonde was watching his every move, and remove one piece of clothing at a time. A difficult task when he knew that as soon as those eyes alighted on him, he was basically prey and waiting to be attacked. At any moment. Could be while he walked, or when he unbuttoned his jeans, or sat on the bed. _At any time, _Deidara would pounce.

He turned as Deidara closed the bedroom door - each of them on either side of the room.

Deidara hadn't stripped at all. He was still fully clothed and all it had taken was Sasori's body language, words and expressions to make Deidara like putty in his hands - regardless that _he _was the one almost naked. There was no denying the hunger there in his expression, Sasori was sure the blonde was seconds from begging on his knees

"Strip" Sasori ordered, barely keeping his boxers on - the only thing left to go and the only bargaining chip he had left if Deidara didn't comply. Thankfully, he did. And then he pounced.

"I'm adjusting to life without scuffs and bruises, thank you" He murmured around kisses, watching Deidara's expression soften.

"I'll play good" Deidara mumbled, showering Sasori's body with soft kisses and wicked licks. "I promise, un"


	14. Chapter 14

**Epilogue:**

They were all sat at Home, the fire crackling softly in the warmly lit living room. They'd all been called there, apparantly, but Konan was nowhere in sight.

Sasori was sat on the floor with Deidara who was resting his back against the front of the sofa. Sasori was curled up in between his legs with the blanket wrapped around him. Deidara was much more relaxed in their Home now, seeing as Konan had allowed Deidara to stay pretty much permanently.

She hadn't said as much, but she hadn't argued when Deidara seemed to be constantly 'staying over' in Sasori's room. Much to Sasori's annoyance, Deidara was still paying the rent on his new placein the Arcane Territories as a backup - Sasori had already moved out of his with the intention of staying Home for a while. When Sasori had asked why the blonde still owned the new place, Deidara had replied with _'safety'. _He refused to rely completely on Sasori's Family and saw it as another advantage to keep his own space available in case of emergencies.

While Sasori considered debating it, he didn't want to scare the vampire off. Deidara had been used to living alone for as long as they'd known eachother - and longer than even that. Despite seeing eachother practically every day and making future plans to live together, they'd never officially had a place of their own.

Sasori knew that his boyfriend needed his own space to be separate, and while he could choose any place that Sasori could take him to on his System, Deidara wanted something that was his own. Sasori had given up thinking about it. Deidara could afford it and it wasn't his problem. He was practically moved in to Sasori's room anyway, even adopting a few drawers and hangers for his clothes.

Deidara's fingers drew patterns on the nape of his neck - a newfound sensation that Sasori quite liked. It had taken a few weeks for things to settle, but their House had changed dramatically over the last few weeks.

For starters, there were more of them around. Deidara was fully healed and had no problems readjusting to his blood-diet, and Sasori had been quick to lay down the rules on relinquishing his own.

Kakuzu and Hidan had finished hunting their Bounty's and were taking a short break to focus on 'personal things' - as far as Sasori could gather, Hidan was making sacrifices and Kakuzu was spending more time in the lab - but both seemed to be around Home more often.

Apparantly Obito was actually related to the Uchiha's - 'ostracised and forgotten' according to Itachi - Deidara had laughed and Sasori wanted to hate the little thing, but Obito had quickly become Zetsu's third shadow. They were almost inseparable and nobody could ignore the fact that Zetsu's mood swings had lessened. While Obito hadn't 'moved in' like Deidara or Itachi seemed to have, he was around most days.

There was still a bit of tension when Itachi and Obito were in the same room, but they seemed to have agreed that both had found a new home, a different life, and a new slate was needed. Deidara had joked that next, there might be smiles and conversations between them instead of 'head-nods', but Sasori was sure it would go at its own pace.

The Uchiha's as a clan had pretty much disbanded into regularity. Itachi had stayed with Kisame - the two of them sprawled out on the sofa against eachother casually (Sasori would admit it was very soppy of his demon brother, but they were rather sweet together). Everybody seemed to accept that Itachi had helped, therefore his past with his fathers company was irrelevent now. He was family, Kisame had said so.

Though, like Deidara or Obito, Konan hadn't blessed him with a ring to officially mark them as such. She was indifferent when Kisame let him stay over, never saying a word when the numbers at the breakfast table seemed to grow. She adapted, cooked, and moved on. She hadn't yet formally accepted any of the new three into the House, but Sasori thought perhaps she was slowly cracking under their soppy pleas.

"Did anybody else get the impression the burning-ring meant _'get your ass back home, now'?" _Hidan asked, and Kakuzu nodded slowly in agreement. Sasori fiddled with his own ring on his left thumb; He and Deidara had been redecorating their little place again when the ring had sent him rushing to the nearest cold tap to stop it searing his skin. It had burned like hell-fire against his skin until he'd thought to head Home. Deidara had wondered why he couldn't just take it off, but Sasori just couldn't explain the attachment. The ring wasn't something you just _took off. _

"Maybe she just got delayed" Sasori suggested, but they all knew it was an invalid point. Konan wasn't easily delayed.

"Is it possible that isn't what it meant?" Itachi asked quietly, and everybody with a ring shook their heads. Sasori counted his heartbeats - all fifteen of them until Konan quietly emerged from the other side of the room.

Kisame was the first to move, gently shifting Itachi from his resting position tangled around him.

"Ko," He said gently, but their blue haired quiet matriarch was clearly out of sorts. She walked up to Deidara first and passed him a small box.

"Wait," She told him, and Deidara nodded once. She moved to Itachi and Kisame next, where she gave Itachi a similar one and smiled a little at Kisame. Zetsu and Obito had come closer towards the group - they had stayed by the outer edges of the room quietly talking to themselves - and Obito received his little box with obvious surprise.

Konan still had one in her hand, but she tucked it into her jacket pocked at laced her delicate hands together in front of her.

"You can open them now" She told them, standing in front of the coffee table - the fireplace behind her - looking every inch the powerful witch she was. Sasori watched Obito open his, because he was directly opposite and Deidara was fiddling with his behind Sasori's back.

"They're on loan," Konan said carefully. "You'll have to earn them in order to keep them, but you've all deserved them, one way or another" She wasn't looking at anybody in particular. A nudge in the back made Sasori turn, eyeing the ring that Deidara now had placed on his right index finger as per instruction from the small note inside, a teal colour shining from it as it hit the light. Sasori brought his left thumb up to match it, his own silvery-purple ring distinctly similar. Sasori dropped his hand and turned to Konan, now fiddling with her own white band across her right middle finger. A glance at Itachi and Obito was all it took to realise they both had one too.

"And the other one?" Hidan asked, motioning towards the box in Konan's pocket. Hidan and Kakuzu already had their rings - everyone in their House now owned one.

"He's not ready yet" Konan said quietly, a sad smile on her face. Sasori's head swam. _Oh, Konan… _

"You're still hoping?" Kisame asked, no judgement in his voice - just a careful observation.

"He just needs time" She said surely. Nobody mentioned that it had already been five years, that she'd been shouldering the guilt for just as long. "Which is why I need to go"

"No" Kisame said first. "You'll only end up upsetting yourself"

"Then let me upset myself"

Kisame bit his bottom lip closed and Sasori noticed - along with everybody else - as Itachi placed his hand over the demon's arm.

"Are you sure it's a good idea?" Kakuzu asked. "Leaving us with the new recruits?" That was the going nick-name for the new additions. Obito was the only one who hadn't yet moved in un-officially.

"I trust you all to be sensible" She eyed Hidan for a moment. "The safe houses will still be protected, as will here" Her eyes scanned the entire of the living room. "My spells will still work, even if I cross the realms, it's not a problem. But in case anything does happen… you have your rings"

"How long?" Zetsu asked, his voice softer than normal. "Will you be gone, we mean"

"As long as it takes"

"You'll check in?" Sasori frowned at her. "Promise you'll at least do that?"

"Every week" She nodded in agreement and the heavy weight seemed to lift.

"Human realm?" Kakuzu asked.

Kisame watched her carefully when she nodded. "Most likely" She replied.

He had been the one to pry Konan out from the shadows when she was ready to shroud herself in them completely. He'd picked up the fragile pieces of her core, putting them back together stitch by stitch until she began to at least eat a meal. He'd been there through her nightmares and had been the one to fret every other hour about whether or not he should have obeyed her order to stay, when he should have gone instead.

If he had gone, the fucker could be just as dead as Yahiko and that would have been the end of the matter. She'd greive and have done with it. Instead, Kisame had stayed, the bastard had disappeared and Konan had clung to her hope that he'd come back.

None of them wanted to see the wreck that she was come back again.

"If you don't," He said, like a bargaining father. "I will end him"

"I know" She whispered. "Every Sunday, I promise"

And then the hugging began. Sasori moved first, offering to help Konan pack for her 'trip' as he held her close and thanked her.

"I'll take care of Dei, don't worry"

She smiled at him and he backed away Deidara, Hidan, Kakuzu, Kisame, Itachi, Zetsu - and finally Obito all hugged her and said their thanks. By the end of it, she was pink-faced and wiping away her tears.

"If it doesn't' work, it doesn't work" Kisame told her, reassurance laced into every word. "You still come back to your Home"

"I know" She smiled her happy smile and Sasori felt a little better. "So, now you all feel sorry for me, can I pick the movie tonight?"

"No fucking way!" They all leapt up, some for the remote, others for the video and DVD selection, but Konan kept where she was - laughing at them all - as they tried to argue it out between them.

**THE END. **


End file.
